April 28, 2011

2011 Schedule (PDF)

DAYTON, Ohio – Head Coach Kelly Sheffield released the 2011 University of Dayton volleyball schedule on Thursday which features 20 contests against teams with winning records in 2010, 13 regular season home matches, and the return of the Atlantic 10 Championship to the Frericks Center.

“We have a schedule that is going to challenge us in a lot of different ways,” the reigning A-10 Coach of the Year said. “We're playing teams out of conference that will show us a lot of different styles – which I am excited about. I think it's important to show your team as many styles as possible as you go through a season.”

The season begins on Aug. 26 at the Green Bay Classic as the Flyers will face North Dakota, James Madison and Wisconsin-Green Bay throughout the weekend.

“It will be a little different not opening up the season in Frericks as we are accustomed to doing,” Sheffield said. “But with 13 home matches, fans will have three more opportunities to see the team play at home this season. We open the season against teams that won 25 and 22 matches and then heading to Illinois to play against three quality teams in Illinois, Tennessee, and Houston.”

Three of the four teams at the Illini Classic in early September finished the 2010 season nationally ranked. Dayton, the reigning No. 15 team in the country, opens the Classic with Houston on Friday, Sept. 2, followed by back-to-back matches against No. 24 Tennessee and No. 9 Illinois on Saturday, Sept. 3.

The Flyers then return to Dayton to open their 13-match home schedule at the Frericks Center by hosting the Dayton Flyer Classic with Florida State, Michigan and Pepperdine. All four teams in the Dayton Flyer Classic finished 2010 with an RPI in the top 55. Dayton has gone undefeated, 24-0, in the last two regular seasons at home.

“The Dayton Flyer Classic will be one of the premier tournaments in the country with Florida State, Michigan, and Pepperdine coming into town – three teams capable of winning a few matches in the NCAA Tournament,” Sheffield said. “With Wright State and Notre Dame also coming to UD later in the season, our fans should get the opportunity to see a lot of great volleyball in Frericks this Fall.”

Dayton concludes its non-conference invitational tour with a trip to Buffalo, N.Y., to compete in the Buffalo Classic with Cornell, Syracuse and Buffalo. The Flyers’ two remaining non-conference games will be at the Frericks Center against Wright State on Oct. 18 and Notre Dame on Nov. 25.

Dayton will put a 24-match conference winning streak on the line when opening Atlantic 10 Conference play on a four match home stand at the Frericks Center against La Salle, Temple, Saint Louis and Duquesne. In the 15-match conference season the Flyers will play all but three A-10 opponents twice – at home and on the road. The three teams UD will face just once are Temple at home, Duquesne at home, and Rhode Island on the road.

The rematch of the 2010 A-10 Championship Final against Xavier will be on Oct. 14 at the Frericks Center, and again in Cincinnati on Nov. 4.

Senior Night, honoring UD’s lone senior Yvonne Marten, will be the last home conference regular season match on Nov. 6 against Fordham.

For the second time in three years, Dayton will host the Atlantic 10 Championship at the Frericks Center on Nov. 18-20. The Flyers will try for a third consecutive tournament title, having won six of the last eight tournament crowns.

The last home match of the regular season will be on Nov. 25 against Notre Dame. It will be the second consecutive season the Flyers will face the Fighting Irish. UD swept Notre Dame on Sept. 19, 2010 in South Bend, Ind., to take the Notre Dame Invitational title.

In 2010, UD volleyball became the first team in Dayton Athletics history to make the NCAA Championship in four consecutive seasons. On Nov. 27, the Flyers will know if it will be five consecutive trips to the tournament as the field of 64 will be announced during Selection Sunday. The 2011 NCAA Championship features Regional sites in Gainesville (Fla.), Honolulu (Hawaii), Minneapolis (Minn.), and Lexington (Ky.) from Dec. 9-10. The National Semifinals and Final will be held in San Antonio, Texas from Dec. 15-17. First and Second Rounds will be held at campus sites.

Dayton concluded spring practice last week with an unblemished record of 4-0 in exhibition play, including wins against Ohio State and Ohio. The Flyers return seven players from last season’s Atlantic 10 Conference Championship squad.

2011 Dayton Volleyball Schedule Breakdown (RPI Top 100 Teams)

Team	Date (Site)	2010 Record Overall/Conf.	Conference - Finish * - tournament champs	NCAA Tournament	2010 RPI (NCAA)	2010 Ranking (AVCA)
DAYTON	N/A	28-4 / 15-0	ATLANTIC 10 - 1ST*	SECOND ROUND	12	15
Florida State	9/9 (H)	22-11 / 12-8	ACC - 4th	Second Round	31	RV
Houston	9/2 (N)	19-13 / 13-7	Conference USA - 2nd	-	91	-
Illinois	9/3 (A)	24-9 / 14-6	Big Ten - T-2nd	Regional Semifinals	7	9
James Madison	8/27 (N)	22-8 / 10-4	CAA - 2nd	-	92	-
Michigan	9/10 (H)	23-10 / 12-8	Big Ten - T-4th	First Round	41	RV
North Dakota	8/26 (N)	25-5 / 12-0	Great West - 1st*	-	89	-
Notre Dame	11/25 (H)	18-13 / 10-4	BIG EAST -  5th	-	81	-
Pepperdine	9/9 (H)	20-8 / 11-3	WCC - 3rd	-	52	-
Saint Louis	9/20 (H); 11/13 (A)	19-13 / 11-4	Atlantic 10 - 3rd	-	58	-
Tennessee	9/3 (N)	25-7 / 15-5	SEC - 2nd Eastern	Second Round	15	24
Xavier	10/14 (H); 11/4 (A)	20-10 / 12-3	Atlantic 10 - 2nd	-	61	-