University of Georgia Athletics
Volleyball Faces Competitive 2016 Schedule
May 16, 2016 | Volleyball
ATHENS, Ga. --- Georgia volleyball head coach Lizzy Stemke officially announced the 2016 schedule on Monday, highlighted by a pair of home tournaments and 16 matches in Athens.
The challenges will come in plenty for the Bulldogs with six foes claiming a spot in the 2015 NCAA Tournament, including a trio of opponents moving past the first round. Of the 25 opponents on the slate, eight ranked in the top 100 RPI by the end of the 2015 season, including four in the top 25 and two in the top 10.
"This team and program is eager and hungry for a new season ahead," Stemke said. "We all feel like we have much to prove, but more importantly we know we are in a stronger, more solidified place to attack the year. Our preseason schedule will have us local the majority of the time with the exception of our Boston trip in which we will play at two different sites while traveling.
"Our SEC season will once again prove challenging, but just as with every passing year and the turnover on all rosters, the conference will once again look slightly different. The growing parity in our league is a strength of the SEC, and we are excited to get it started with the 2016 roster."
Georgia opens the season with the Benson Hospitality Invitational. Georgia will host Savannah State, UNC Asheville, and San Francisco in the two-day tournament. Georgia will take on Savannah State in its season debut on August 26 before its doubleheader day against UNC Asheville and San Francisco on Saturday.
The Bulldogs take to the road for back-to-back away tournaments. On September 2-3, Georgia will compete at the Beantown Challenge in Boston, Massachusetts. Georgia will face New Hampshire and Harvard on Friday before playing Boston College on Saturday.
The following weekend, the Bulldogs return back to the home state for the Georgia Challenge to be played in Atlanta. Featuring teams only from Georgia, the Bulldogs open play with Kennesaw State and Georgia State on September 8. Georgia closes it out with Georgia Tech on Friday, September 9.
Georgia is in Athens to host Florida A&M on September 13 followed by the Bulldog Invitational that weekend. Georgia will host Bethune-Cookman, McNeese State, and South Alabama, facing Bethune-Cookman on Friday before taking on McNeese State and South Alabama on September 17.
The non-conference portion will have the Bulldogs ready for a competitive SEC schedule, as five conference foes finished 2015 with 20 or more wins. The 18-game SEC slate begins on the road, opening league play against Kentucky (Sept. 21) and Tennessee (Sept. 25). The Bulldogs' SEC opener in Ramsey Center will come against Alabama (Sept. 30) followed by Auburn (Oct. 2)
The road schedule for the Bulldogs consists of trips to South Carolina (Oct. 7), Auburn (Oct. 12), Florida (Oct. 23), Arkansas (Oct. 30), LSU (Nov. 11), Texas A&M (Nov. 13) and closing out the year at Mississippi State (Nov. 26).
LSU (Oct. 9), Texas A&M (Oct. 21), Florida (Nov. 2) and South Carolina (Nov. 6) will all come to Athens before the Bulldogs kick off a three-match homestand on November 18 against Arkansas. Georgia then wraps its home schedule facing Ole Miss on November 20 and Missouri on November 23.
All regular-season home matches are free at the Ramsey Center. To view the full schedule, visit georgiadogs.com.
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