TicketsCINCINNATI – University of Cincinnati volleyball head coach Molly Alvey announced her program's 2017 schedule, a slate that will feature 32 matches, including nine home dates at nearby St. Ursula Academy, with eight of those matches coming against six programs that joined the Bearcats in the 64-team 2016 NCAA Volleyball Tournament: Utah, Kentucky, Dayton, Michigan, SMU (2x) and Wichita State (2x).
"Looking at who we have returning, who we lost and who we are bringing into the team, this team is ready for a very challenging schedule," Alvey said. "This schedule will help us both prepare for conference and to elevate us in post season selection. The non-conference schedule is incredibly competitive. We have no easy weekends with several Top 25 and Top 30 teams. Our schedule is very well rounded to help us accomplish our two goals of being prepared for conference and to put us in a good position for postseason play."
The Bearcats return as strong core of players from last season, a roster that includes Jordan Thompson, a 2016 AVCA All-American and the American Athletic Conference Player of the Year, and Jade Tingelhoff, the 2016 AAC Setter of the Year. Alvey, who was tabbed the 2016 AAC Coach of the Year, is set to guide her Bearcats following a 2016 season in which they posted a 22-10 overall record and finished second in the American with a 17-3 league mark, just one match shy of eventual champion SMU (26-8, 18-2). With the success the Bearcats enjoyed in the American, the conference slate will now be even more challenging with the addition of Wichita State, a perennial conference title contender.
"Wichita State definitely changes the landscape of the conference for us," Alvey said. "They are always a competitive program and always were at the top of their previous conference and had been for years, so you know you are getting a good volleyball program out of them. We were lucky enough to play at Wichita State last year in non-conference and the atmosphere they provided is really awesome volleyball. They add not just the volleyball aspect, but the atmosphere of playing a big-time program, which will be great for everyone in the conference."
The season will open August 25-26 with three matches at the Bluegrass Battle in Lexington, Ky., a two-day event that will see the Bearcats battle three foes that finished last season ranked in the Top 55 of the final RPI standings, including an opener with NCAA participant Utah before a match with Arkansas State. The next day, UC faces NCAA second-round advancer and host Kentucky. From there, the Bearcats will participate in the Xavier Tournament (Sept. 1-2) with matches against Xavier, Texas State and Western Michigan, before hitting the road for the Redbird Classic in Normal, Ill.
At the Redbird (Sept. 8-9), UC will face Seton Hall on September 8 before meeting NCAA participant Dayton on September 9 and host Illinois State later that day. The final non-conference matches will follow one week later with a trip to Ann Arbor, Mich., and the Michigan Challenge, September 15-16. UC will face NC State and Milwaukee on September 15 before facing host Michigan, who advanced the NCAA Third Round in 2016, on September 26.
The month of September will see the Bearcats open conference play, a slate that will feature 20 matches in total, nine of which will be played at UC's temporary home, St. Ursula Academy. Following a road trip through Florida with matches at USF (Sept. 22) and UCF (Sept. 24), the Bearcats will play their first two home contests as they welcome Tulsa to town on September 29 before hosting the first of two showdowns with defending champion SMU on October 1.
"I think it will be a really fun conference season," Alvey said. "It is always competitive, top to bottom. I am sure all of us, as coaches, will be looking to see what happens every weekend because there is always something going on and we, as a whole, have done a great job with each of our individual schedules, which has elevated the level of our conference RPI overall. We finished sixth last year (in RPI), which is fantastic for the conference and Wichita State will only help us in that area."
The Bearcats will then hit the road for their lone meetings with both UConn (Oct. 6) and Temple (Oct. 8) before hosting Houston (Oct. 13) and Tulane (Oct. 15) the following weekend. From there, it will be four-consecutive road matches, opening first at Wichita State on October 20, a place UC scored a 3-1 victory in last season's non-conference schedule. The trip continues with matches at Memphis (Oct. 22), SMU (Oct. 26) and Tulsa (Oct. 28).
When the calendar turns to November, the Bearcats will play host to four-consecutive home matches starting with UCF coming to town on November 3. The four-match home stand will also see USF (Nov. 5), Memphis (Nov. 10) and Wichita State (Nov. 12) all come to the Queen City.
The final two weeks of the season will see UC on the road in three of its final four matches, starting with a two-match road trip. First, UC will head to Tulane (Nov. 17) before playing at Houston (Nov. 19). The Bearcats will then play their final home match of the season as they welcome East Carolina on November 22 before traveling to face ECU two days later (Nov. 24) in the regular season finale.
The postseason will get underway November 26 as the NCAA will announce its field of 64 teams. From there, campus sites will play host to the NCAA First and NCAA Second Round matches (November 30-December 2). The regional competitions, which will feature the NCAA Third Round and Quarterfinals, will be held December 8-9 at locations that will be announced later. Finally, the NCAA Championship Semifinal and Final will be held December 14 & 16 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.
// EXPERIENCE UC
All home volleyball matches will be part of Experience UC once again this year. Experience UC includes complimentary admission to all home volleyball competitions, along with home events for women's basketball, lacrosse, tennis, men's and women's soccer, swimming & diving and track & field. For more information or to learn more about bringing groups to home events, contact the UC Marketing office at (513) 556-0838.
// FOLLOW THE TEAM
Stay connected with UC volleyball on Facebook (GoBearcatsVB), Twitter (@GoBearcatsVB / @CoachAlveyUC) and Instagram (GoBearcatsVB).
"Looking at who we have returning, who we lost and who we are bringing into the team, this team is ready for a very challenging schedule," Alvey said. "This schedule will help us both prepare for conference and to elevate us in post season selection. The non-conference schedule is incredibly competitive. We have no easy weekends with several Top 25 and Top 30 teams. Our schedule is very well rounded to help us accomplish our two goals of being prepared for conference and to put us in a good position for postseason play."
The Bearcats return as strong core of players from last season, a roster that includes Jordan Thompson, a 2016 AVCA All-American and the American Athletic Conference Player of the Year, and Jade Tingelhoff, the 2016 AAC Setter of the Year. Alvey, who was tabbed the 2016 AAC Coach of the Year, is set to guide her Bearcats following a 2016 season in which they posted a 22-10 overall record and finished second in the American with a 17-3 league mark, just one match shy of eventual champion SMU (26-8, 18-2). With the success the Bearcats enjoyed in the American, the conference slate will now be even more challenging with the addition of Wichita State, a perennial conference title contender.
"Wichita State definitely changes the landscape of the conference for us," Alvey said. "They are always a competitive program and always were at the top of their previous conference and had been for years, so you know you are getting a good volleyball program out of them. We were lucky enough to play at Wichita State last year in non-conference and the atmosphere they provided is really awesome volleyball. They add not just the volleyball aspect, but the atmosphere of playing a big-time program, which will be great for everyone in the conference."
The season will open August 25-26 with three matches at the Bluegrass Battle in Lexington, Ky., a two-day event that will see the Bearcats battle three foes that finished last season ranked in the Top 55 of the final RPI standings, including an opener with NCAA participant Utah before a match with Arkansas State. The next day, UC faces NCAA second-round advancer and host Kentucky. From there, the Bearcats will participate in the Xavier Tournament (Sept. 1-2) with matches against Xavier, Texas State and Western Michigan, before hitting the road for the Redbird Classic in Normal, Ill.
At the Redbird (Sept. 8-9), UC will face Seton Hall on September 8 before meeting NCAA participant Dayton on September 9 and host Illinois State later that day. The final non-conference matches will follow one week later with a trip to Ann Arbor, Mich., and the Michigan Challenge, September 15-16. UC will face NC State and Milwaukee on September 15 before facing host Michigan, who advanced the NCAA Third Round in 2016, on September 26.
The month of September will see the Bearcats open conference play, a slate that will feature 20 matches in total, nine of which will be played at UC's temporary home, St. Ursula Academy. Following a road trip through Florida with matches at USF (Sept. 22) and UCF (Sept. 24), the Bearcats will play their first two home contests as they welcome Tulsa to town on September 29 before hosting the first of two showdowns with defending champion SMU on October 1.
"I think it will be a really fun conference season," Alvey said. "It is always competitive, top to bottom. I am sure all of us, as coaches, will be looking to see what happens every weekend because there is always something going on and we, as a whole, have done a great job with each of our individual schedules, which has elevated the level of our conference RPI overall. We finished sixth last year (in RPI), which is fantastic for the conference and Wichita State will only help us in that area."
The Bearcats will then hit the road for their lone meetings with both UConn (Oct. 6) and Temple (Oct. 8) before hosting Houston (Oct. 13) and Tulane (Oct. 15) the following weekend. From there, it will be four-consecutive road matches, opening first at Wichita State on October 20, a place UC scored a 3-1 victory in last season's non-conference schedule. The trip continues with matches at Memphis (Oct. 22), SMU (Oct. 26) and Tulsa (Oct. 28).
When the calendar turns to November, the Bearcats will play host to four-consecutive home matches starting with UCF coming to town on November 3. The four-match home stand will also see USF (Nov. 5), Memphis (Nov. 10) and Wichita State (Nov. 12) all come to the Queen City.
The final two weeks of the season will see UC on the road in three of its final four matches, starting with a two-match road trip. First, UC will head to Tulane (Nov. 17) before playing at Houston (Nov. 19). The Bearcats will then play their final home match of the season as they welcome East Carolina on November 22 before traveling to face ECU two days later (Nov. 24) in the regular season finale.
The postseason will get underway November 26 as the NCAA will announce its field of 64 teams. From there, campus sites will play host to the NCAA First and NCAA Second Round matches (November 30-December 2). The regional competitions, which will feature the NCAA Third Round and Quarterfinals, will be held December 8-9 at locations that will be announced later. Finally, the NCAA Championship Semifinal and Final will be held December 14 & 16 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.
// EXPERIENCE UC
All home volleyball matches will be part of Experience UC once again this year. Experience UC includes complimentary admission to all home volleyball competitions, along with home events for women's basketball, lacrosse, tennis, men's and women's soccer, swimming & diving and track & field. For more information or to learn more about bringing groups to home events, contact the UC Marketing office at (513) 556-0838.
// FOLLOW THE TEAM
Stay connected with UC volleyball on Facebook (GoBearcatsVB), Twitter (@GoBearcatsVB / @CoachAlveyUC) and Instagram (GoBearcatsVB).