Cumberland Volleyball Unveils 2024 Schedule

LEBANON, Tenn.–Cumberland University head volleyball coach Hannah Vadakin announces the team’s 37 match schedule including 13 home contests and seven matches against teams that made the NAIA National Tournament last season.

Cumberland will take on six teams that made the NAIA National Tournament last season including two NAIA Opening Round hosts. The Phoenix will meet Eastern Oregon in Texas. The Mountaineers were an Opening Round host and the No. 3 seed at the final site. The Mountaineers won their pool and reached the semifinals before being beaten by eventual National Champion Indiana Wesleyan. At the same classic, CU will face off against SAGU, also an NAIA Opening Round host last season.

The Phoenix also have matches slated against Aquinas, Bryan College, Talladega, and two matches with last season’s Mid-South Conference Champions, the University of the Cumberlands. Each team made the NAIA National Tournament with automatic berths.

August is chock-full with a lot of matches starting in the friendly confines of the Dallas Floyd Phoenix Arena. Cumberland will host the Phoenix Classic on August 16th and 17th. The Phoenix will take on Missouri Valley and Blue Mountain on opening day. They will finish the classic against William Carey and Fisk.

The following weekend CU will travel to San Antonio, Texas for a tough weekend against unfamiliar teams. Cumberland will play SAGU and Eastern Oregon on Friday, August 23 and then round out the classic against Oklahoma Christian and Our Lady of the Lake on Saturday, August 24.

When Cumberland returns they will head to Dayton, Tennessee on Wednesday, August 28th for a tri-match against Bryan College and Northwestern Ohio. The Phoenix will head north the following weekend for a four game set on the campus of Rio Grande. CU will open up the classic with former Mid-South Conference foe Shawnee State before taking on the host Rio Grande. CU will close the weekend against West Virginia Tech and Ohio Christian.

The following weekend on September 6th and 7th, Cumberland will travel further north to Michigan. On the 6th, Cumberland will face IU South Bend and host Aquinas College and finish the classic against St. Francis and Cornerstone.

Cumberland will return home for two straight matches as they will take on Lane College on September 10th before having a week’s rest heading into the conference opener against Freed-Hardeman on September 17th.

The Phoenix will be in McKenzie, Tennessee on Friday, September 20th to take on Bethel. The next day CU will be in Nashville for a tri-match at Fisk to take on Talladega and the Bulldogs.

Cumberland will have back-to-back away conference matches taking on Georgetown on Tuesday, September 24th and the Cumberlands on September 26th. From Williamsburg, CU will travel to Portsmouth, Ohio for a tri-match against Point Park and Shawnee State.

To open up October and the final stretch of the regular season, Cumberland will be at home to take on Lindsey Wilson on October 1st and will take on Campbellsville at the Dallas Floyd on October 3rd. The following week, the Phoenix will be at Freed-Hardeman on Tuesday, October 8th and will host Bethel on Thursday, October 10th.

The Phoenix will host a tri-match on October 15th as they host Oakland City and Oakwood. After a week’s rest, CU will take on Lindsey Wilson in Columbia on October 22 and Campbellsville on October 24.

The regular season will come to close with home matches on October 29th and November 1st. The Phoenix will host Georgetown and the Cumberlands.

Postseason play will begin at the Mid-South Conference Championships in Bowling Green November 7th-9th. The NAIA Opening Round will be hosted at campus sites on Saturday, November 23rd with the 24 winners meeting in Sioux City, Iowa from December 4th-10th to determine the 2024 NAIA National Champion.