Wayne State College is listed fifth in the initial NCAA Division II Central Region volleyball rankings released Wednesday afternoon by the NCAA office in Indianapolis, Indiana.  The Central Region consists of teams from the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, Great American Conference and Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.
            The Wildcats are ranked fifth in the region with a 20-4 overall record and 18-4 in-region mark.  Minnesota Duluth tops the first region ranking with seven-time defending national champion Concordia-St. Paul second.  Southwest Minnesota State is third with Central Missouri fourth and Wayne State fifth.  Nebraska-Kearney is sixth with Augustana, Missouri Western, Washburn and Winona State rounding out the top 10 teams.
            The top eight teams in the region will advance to the NCAA Central Regional Tournament November 20-22 at the site of the top seed.
            Wayne State, ranked 11^th in this week's AVCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll, is 21-4 overall and 13-3 in the NSIC (3^rd place) following Tuesday night's 3-1 win over Augustana College.  The Wildcats will play at #2 Minnesota Duluth Friday at 7 p.m. and St. Cloud State Saturday in a 4 p.m. contest.
 
NCAA Division II Central Region Rankings (released October 29)
                                                Overall              In-Region
1.         Minnesota Duluth          22-1                  19-0
2.         Concordia-St. Paul        20-3                  15-2
3.         Southwest Minn. State   16-7                  12-5
4.         Central Missouri            15-8                  15-3
5.         Wayne State (Neb.)       20-4                  18-4
6.         Nebraska-Kearney         21-2                  21-2
7.         Augustana (SD)             15-8                  14-8
8.         Missouri Western           18-5                  18-5
9.         Washburn                     18-4                  18-4
10.        Winona State                15-6                  14-5