NEW ORLEANS — After making a second consecutive postseason appearance and finishing with a 22-11 record in the 2019 season, the Tulane volleyball team looks forward to a 2020 schedule that features matchups against eight teams that ranked in last season’s NCAA top 100 RPI, head coach Jim Barnes announced Wednesday.
“We have put together one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the American Athletic Conference, with a goal of preparing for a conference title,” Barnes said. “Teams from the Big Ten, Big 12, SEC and Pac-12 conferences fill our schedule. They will challenge us and prepare us. We look forward to showing our Tulane fans some great high level volleyball at home versus teams such as LSU, Alabama, Indiana, Texas Tech and Mississippi State. Our team is grateful to have our season confirmed and is focused on turning this year into a triumph.”
The Green Wave open preseason play with an exhibition match at Rice on Saturday, Aug. 22 at 1 p.m. before returning home to hold the annual Olive and Blue Scrimmage at the Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse on Tuesday, Aug. 25 at 7 p.m.
Tulane is set to head to El Paso, Texas the following Friday and Saturday — Aug. 28 and 29 — for the I-10 Challenge, competing against Incarnate Word, UTEP and New Mexico in its opening weekend.
On Tuesday, Sept. 1 at 7 p.m., the Olive and Blue will host in-state rival LSU for the first time since 2009. The team will remain in New Orleans the following weekend, welcoming Texas State, Alabama and Stephen F. Austin for the Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Classic from Friday to Sunday (Sept. 4-5).
Tulane will then travel to the West Coast for a two-day tournament, competing against Southern California, Northern Colorado and Long Beach State in Los Angeles, California on Friday and Saturday (Sept.11-12).
A mid-week matchup at Southern Miss is next up for Tulane, set for Tuesday, Sept. 15 at 6 p.m. The Tulane Invitational scheduled for Thursday and Friday (Sept 17-18) will wrap up non-conference action for the Green Wave. Tulane will host Texas Tech, Mississippi State and Indiana in the team’s second home tournament of the year.
The 16-match American Athletic Conference portion of the schedule begins on the road, with a matchup against Cincinnati on Friday, Sept. 25 at 6 p.m. and one against ECU on Sunday, Sept. 27 at 12 p.m.
The Green Wave open league play at home against USF on Friday, Oct. 2 before facing UCF on Sunday, Oct. 4 at 1 p.m. The team hits the road again the following weekend, with two matches at Memphis and SMU on Friday, Oct. 9 and Sunday, Oct. 11, at 7 p.m. and 1 p.m., respectively.
Tulane heads home for a mid-week matchup against Houston on Wednesday, Oct. 14 at 6:30 p.m. before traveling to Temple for a lone weekend competition on Friday, Oct. 16 at 6 p.m. The Olive and Blue close the month with two consecutive weekends at Fogelman in Devlin, welcoming Tulsa and Wichita State on Friday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 25 at 1 p.m. before hosting SMU and Memphis on Friday, Oct. 30 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 1 at 1 p.m., respectively.
The team heads to the Sunshine State for its final regular season road trip, facing UCF on Friday, Nov. 6 at 6 p.m. and USF on Sunday, Nov. 8 at 12 p.m. Tulane wraps up regular season action the following weekend, hosting ECU on Friday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. and Cincinnati for a Senior Day matchup on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 1 p.m.
Following the completion of the regular season, the AAC Championship will be held in Cincinnati from Friday, Nov. 20 to Sunday, Nov. 22.
The NCAA Selection Show will be held on Sunday, Nov. 29, with the first round of the tournament beginning on Thursday, Dec. 3.
Tulane volleyball season tickets are on sale now and can be purchased for $55 at TulaneTix.com.
Follow Tulane volleyball on social media at @GreenWaveVB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Follow Tulane Athletics on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram.
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{Courtesy: Press Release from Tulane Athletics}
