SCHEDULE
Friday, Sept. 1 – 10 a.m. CT | No. 22 WKU vs. Colgate | Stats | Watch | Varsity Network Radio
Friday, Sept. 1 – 6 p.m. CT | at No. 14 Penn State | Stats | Watch | Varsity Network Radio
Saturday, Sept. 2 – 10 a.m. CT | No. 22 WKU vs. James Madison | Stats | Watch | Varsity Network Radio
No. 22 WKU will play its first match against 2022 NCAA Tournament contender Colgate, on Friday morning on September 1. The Raiders wrapped up their with a solid 24-6 and posting a 14-2 conference record. Winning the Patriot League regular season and tournament title last season, they opened their 2023 campaign 2-1, with a tough 2-3 loss to Missouri last weekend.
WKU faces off against host No. 14 Penn State Friday evening at 6 pm CT, who opened the 2023 campaign ranked No. 8, but dropped due to back-to-back ranked losses against Florida and Georgia Tech last week. The Nittany Lions see a veteran of players on roster -- including Ohio State grad transfer Mac Prodraza, who is cousins with WKU's very own Abby Schaefer.
The Red and White's final match of the weekend comes against the James Madison Dukes on Saturday, Sept. 2. This is the first meeting since 2003, JMU is coming off of a 15-1 Sun Belt conference record and an NCAA First Round birth in 2022.
WKU Volleyball wrapped up their first weekend of volleyball in Dayton, Ohio, 2-1. After upending No. 12 Marquette, the Hilttoppers fell short in three frames to host Dayton, before coming back and gaining the first sweep of the season against Drake on Saturday. WKU took care of Belmont Tuesday evening for their home-opener inside Diddle Arena with a 3-0 sweep, including holding the Bruins to a low eight points in the first set.
TOP STORYLINES
- WKU has been predicted to win the conference title in the Conference USA Preseason Poll voted by the league's coaches. Callie Bauer, Paige Briggs, Kaylee Cox, and Kenadee Coyle, were all selected to the Preseason All-Conference Team. Briggs was tabbed Preseason Player of the Year. After a third place finish in 2022, UTEP was predicted to finish second.
- WKU Volleyball was ranked 22nd in the AVCA Preseason Coaches Poll. The Hilltoppers have now been ranked in the top 25 in 12 of the last 13 seasons and received votes for 13 consecutive campaigns.
- After a marquee, 3-1, upset over No. 12 Marquette last weekend, WKU moved up in the AVCA coaches poll to number 22.
- Last season, WKU owned a 29-4 overall record after earning the Conference USA regular season title, only suffering two regular season losses. The Hilltoppers opened play in the NCAA with a 3-0 sweep of Bowling Green before succumbing to No. 15 Kentucky in the second round in Lexington.
- All-American Paige Briggs is returning for her fifth year of eligibility on The Hill in 2023. The outside hitter is a four-time All-Conference, four-time AVCA All-Region, and two-time AVCA All-American Honorable Mention that is in the program's top 10 in career attempts, kills, and kills/set.
- Anchoring into his 29th year on The Hill, head coach Travis Hudson is the longest current tenured head coach at WKU, and long-serving in the volleyball program. Hudson is a five-time C-USA Coach of the Year, seven-time AVCA South Region Coach of the Year, holds 15 NCAA Tournament appearances, and 23 consecutive 20-win seasons -- second longest in the NCAA.
How to Follow WKU Volleyball: For complete information on WKU Volleyball, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUVolleyball and head coach Travis Hudson at @TravisHudsonWKU. The team is also on Instagram and Facebook
