April 7, 2009
2009 Volleyball Schedule
DAYTON, Ohio - The University of Dayton volleyball program has announced its 2009 fall schedule, which features a number of perennial contenders and big players from the 2008 NCAA Volleyball Tournament. UD will also serve as the host site for the 2009 Atlantic 10 Volleyball Championship.
"One-third of our non-conference schedule is against teams that were in the NCAA Tournament field last year. We play five teams that won their first round matchup and three teams that made it to the Sweet 16," said Dayton head coach Kelly Sheffield. "Every single one of our tournaments is going to be challenging. I like that, and I know our team relishes in that kind of situation."
Dayton will face six teams that advanced to the field of 64 last December. Michigan, Purdue and Western Michigan advanced past the opening weekend of play, while Ohio, Cincinnati and Saint Louis earned a berth to the tournament.
The Flyers open up their home slate with the Dayton Flyer Classic on Friday, Sept. 11 against Connecticut at 7:00 p.m. UD will also welcome Samford and Creighton to the Frericks Center for the tournament.
Seeking redemption, Dayton will play host to a trio of foes which dealt them tough road losses last fall. The return game of the Cincinnati/Dayton series will take place on Sept. 29 at 7:00 p.m., while Saint Louis comes to town on Oct. 17 and Ohio visits Frericks on Nov. 27 in pivotal matchups.
"The scheduling is going to be a little different since the Atlantic 10 is doing away with split divisions. It appears that just about every team will be stronger than what they were a year ago. This has been a multi-bid league the past couple of seasons, and, as a conference, we are trying to take that next step and be a three or four bid league," said Sheffield. "I believe the schedule prepares us for the rigors of the Atlantic 10 conference season while also challenging our team and staff in a way so that we can take the next step in the NCAA Tournament."
UD will compete in three other invitational events in the beginning of the season. They will head to Purdue, Western Michigan and Michigan to play three matches apiece.
A complete list of events, including game times and opponents will be made available shortly.
