TC NIT again proves to be magnet for nation’s top volleyball clubs

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – A coast-to-coast roster of the nation’s most accomplished volleyball programs will fill the halls again at the Kansas City Convention Center, as Triple Crown Sports prepares to unleash the 2023 TC NIT event over President’s Day Weekend.

Featuring action in age groups ranging from 12u through 18u, the TC NIT welcomes 568 teams, with balls first going in the air on College Camp Friday, Feb. 17. That full day of college-coach driven instruction and clinics is followed with three days of high-tempo tournament play, concluding with championship day on Monday, Feb. 20.

The event is scheduled so the highest-ranked teams play each other right away, with Power Pool teams still guaranteed a berth in the Elite championship bracket. Other teams can earn their way into the final chase for the trophy – the 13u through 15u championship matches will be broadcast on YouTube, with the 16u through 18u title matches broadcast on ESPN-3.

With 71 courts covering the grounds in Bartle Hall, the TC NIT will field 76 of the top 100 clubs (as positioned in TC’s US Club Rankings), with 147 clubs overall in attendance ranging from Hawaii to New York, and Florida to Oregon. College Camp Friday will be populated with 750-plus athletes absorbing tactics to improve their games – more than 500 college coaches will spend time at the event in full recruiting mode, and conservative estimates see about 22,000 visitors coming to Kansas City, creating a $15 million economic impact moment.

“This event is a 12-month investment of work and planning, but it all begins with the tireless support of the clubs, coaches, players and fans who have stood behind the TC NIT with total enthusiasm,” said Jared Rudiger, director of volleyball at Triple Crown Sports. “I can’t be any happier with the consideration and detail-driven efforts of Kansas City as a whole. We look forward to watching these passionate and committed young women go to work on the courts and encourage others to check out the event and be inspired by the level of competition.”

The TC NIT began in 2014 and moved to Kansas City in 2019. The event has evolved numerous special touches embraced by the volleyball world, including shuttle arrangements for teams to get to and from the airport, a dynamic vendor row, free seminars on helping athletes prepare for demands at the next level and a parent hospitality room, with drinks and snacks available for fans needing a break from the whistles.
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About Triple Crown Sports
Based in Fort Collins, CO., Triple Crown Sports has been producing youth, high school and college events for 40 years. TCS runs both the preseason and postseason WNIT basketball events and produces the men’s and women’s DI Cancun Challenge tournaments in November. Triple Crown is also powering “WNIT” concept events in D-I softball (NISC) and volleyball (NIVC), with those two events debuting in 2017. Triple Crown’s PV College Challenge features more than 10 of the top DI college softball teams in the country each year in Puerto Vallarta, MX. Anchored by the 1,100-team Colorado 4th of July event, TC fastpitch tournaments draw the nation’s finest club programs, and hundreds of college coaches attend TCS events for recruiting purposes. TCS produces one of the largest youth baseball events in the world with the Omaha SlumpBuster during the College World Series. The Triple Crown Volleyball NIT has become the top-recruited club volleyball event in the country each February when 550-plus teams compete in Kansas City, MO