Many athletic teams lock horns in tournaments hosted by the U.

Last weekend nearly 2,000 fans filled the University of Utah's Crimson Court to watch four teams battle in the first round of the NCAA Volleyball Tournament.

The 2005 tournament is not the only one to take place at Utah this year. Weeks ago, the first round of the 2005 Women's Soccer Tournament was held at Ute Field. And in the spring, "March Madness" comes to the Utah campus when it plays host to the first round of the 2006 Men's NCAA Basketball Tournament.

Although Utah's Athletic Department runs various game operations all year round, these tournaments definitely require some additional work and planning. For volleyball and soccer tournaments, the NCAA requires each institution to fill out an NCAA bid packet months in advance.

According to Utah athletics events coordinator Steve Pyne, these packets include information on the facilities and the average ticket sales and attendance over the season. Once a school has been chosen on "Selection Sunday," the Athletic Department has three to four days to get everything up and running from sports medicine to security and parking.

Generally, the athletic director appoints a tournament manager to handle the event. Since the time can be somewhat of a challenge, a lot of preparation is done beforehand.

"We just utilize our staff," said Pyne, who also functions as the tournament manager. The host institution is responsible for providing ushers, trainers, marketing/merchandising personnel, scorers, PA announcers, parking, line judges, set-up crews, plumbers and electricians, media credentials and computer personnel.

"I have several preliminary meetings," said Pyne. "Then after the selection bid, I just have to call the staff and let them know the times to be here."

Pyne also puts together a host institutional packet outlining all travel arrangements, which is faxed to school administrators on Selection Sunday.

Then a date for an administrative meeting is set, and the NCAA regional representative flies out the day before with an agenda. Every tournament has a specific NCAA manual covering timelines, practices, colors, match protocol, national anthem, rules and officials' assignments.

These are all discussed in the meeting the day before the tournament begins. The operations are similar to regular season games; however, the NCAA plays a much larger role in all aspects.