It’s not lost on Pitt volleyball coach Dan Fisher that being one of 16 remaining teams in the nation competing for a national championship is a dream scenario for most programs.

However, Fisher and the Panthers have set a far higher standard since 2021, going a combined 123-15 en route to four consecutive Final Fours but falling just short of the title game each time.

Fisher doesn’t take the road to reaching a Final Four — namely getting past ever-stiffening competition — lightly, yet for him and his players, there are bigger aspirations.

“It’s just trying to hold two thoughts in your head at the same time,” Fisher said. “One is that the reality is making a Sweet 16, an Elite Eight or a Final Four — that’s a good season. But we want more.”

Standing in the way of Pitt (28-4, 18-2 ACC), which earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and is one of four regional hosts, is fourth-seeded Minnesota (24-9, 12-8 Big Ten). The two squads square off at 7 p.m. Thursday at Petersen Events Center.

Both the Panthers and Gophers dispatched their first- and second-round tournament foes via three-set sweeps.

Minnesota took down Fairfield and Iowa State, while Pitt eliminated UMBC and Michigan to set up Thursday’s showdown.

For Fisher and his opposite at Minnesota, Keegan Cook, there is some familiarity.

Cook, coach at Washington from 2015-22, defeated Fisher and the Panthers in the Elite Eight in 2020.

Cook’s now running a different program with different players half a decade later, but that win over Pitt with the Huskies stayed in his mind, especially seeing how high the Panthers began to climb just a season later.

“Back then, it was right before Pitt would go on a run of Final Fours, but you could see the seeds of what they were planting, particularly in the culture of their team,” Cook said. “I think great programs create a culture and it was certainly in place back then. It was the pandemic, it was the spring, we had a great five-set match with Pitt.

“But you could see what they were putting together and the style of volleyball they play. It’s relentless, it’s enthusiastic — I think it brings out the best of their opponent and makes for a great match. I’m counting on Pitt a little bit to bring out the best of who we are.”

Fisher needed no reminder of his last meeting with Cook.

“Minnesota’s a great team, they’re well-coached and they will be tough to beat,” Pitt’s 13th-year coach said. “I reminded Keegan that the last time we played each other, they knocked us out when he was at Washington to make the Final Four in the covid bubble. Hoping to return the favor.”

Fisher and Cook prepare for battle having both recently earned AVCA regional coach of the year honors. Fisher won his fifth for the East Coast region and Cook, a three-time Pacific North region honoree at Washington, took home honors for the Northwest.

Cook’s award was well-earned, as his team navigated four season-ending injuries to key contributors in outside hitters Mckenna Wucherer and Alex Acevedo, libero Zeynep Palabiyik and middle blocker Calissa Minatee.

But the Gophers, led by AVCA Northwest Region Player of the Year Julia Hanson, rallied, racking up regular-season wins against No. 23 Indiana, No. 24 Penn State and No. 11 Purdue.

Hanson, leading her team with 462 kills (4.13 per set), has the attention of Pitt.

“She’s definitely a hard hitter,” Panthers outside hitter Blaire Bayless said. “She finds ways to hit the ball hard even when she’s out of rhythm. It’s definitely going to be important for us to be big at the net. I’m excited for that challenge. I’m hoping to get lots of blocks this upcoming game and slow her down as much as possible. To keep our big hitters in rhythm, too, is going to be really huge for us.”

Likewise, as it pertains to Minnesota’s preparation for Thursday, the reputation of Pitt’s Olivia Babcock precedes her.

Babcock, the back-to-back ACC Player of the Year in 2024 and 2025, took home her second straight AVCA East Coast Region Player of the Year award Tuesday.

Bayless, Babcock, middle blockers Ryla Jones and Bre Kelley, plus setter Brooke Mosher and outside hitter Marina Pezelj were all named to the East Coast all-region squad.

An immense level of respect was evident in the way Minnesota’s players spoke about Babcock.

“She’s an incredible player,” Hanson said. “At practice, we were focusing on her tendencies and what she likes to do, but she’s going to get her kills and that’s fine. She’s going to take a bunch of swings, get her kills and that’s OK. We know that, and we know there’s other ways we can stop them and stop their offense.”

As Hanson suggested, completely denying Babcock, averaging 5.06 kills per set, doesn’t appear to be part of the Gophers’ game plan.

Working together to limit her as much as possible will instead be the objective.

“She’s a beast — there’s no chance she’s not going to get kills,” setter Stella Swanson said. “She’s incredible. But if we can keep her to a certain hitting percentage and limit how many kills she has, we’ll be great.”

A total of 4,240 fans piled in the Pete to support the Panthers in Friday’s win over UMBC. A day later, 4,149 watched Pitt sweep Michigan.

As the price of poker to advance deeper goes up, Fisher is urging Pitt fans to take nothing for granted and show up Thursday in full force.

“To make the Elite 8 (on Saturday), you need to get past the Sweet 16,” Fisher said. “I just don’t want fans looking ahead too far. I want them to come help us get there.”