Bulldog volleyball unveils 2017 schedule
SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Bryant University Athletics and head coach Theresa Garlacy have announced the 2017 Bulldog volleyball schedule, featuring 13 home matches and four first-time opponents amid a challenging 32-match slate.
The Bulldogs will take part in four tournaments in the first half of the 2017 season, including hosting the Hampton Inn-vitational at the Chace Athletic Center for the third-straight year. The team's 2017 slate will feature matchups against 11 different conferences and three NCAA tournament qualifiers from a season ago.
Tournament Play
Bryant opens the campaign across the country at the Titan Tournament hosted by Cal State Fullerton Aug. 25-26, where the Bulldogs will take on three first-time opponents in Drake, UC Riverside and the tournament host Titans.
Bryant returns to New England for the Boston College Invitational to open September play, taking on its fourth first-time opponent in the season's first five matches in North Texas on a neutral court. The Bulldogs play the host Eagles later on Sept. 1 in a match that will break a 1-1 series tie. The Black and Gold wrap up play in Chestnut Hill Sept. 2 with their second all-time meeting with Ivy League member Princeton and first since earning a 3-1 win over the Tigers at home back in 2013.
The Bulldogs will then welcome Manhattan, Stony Brook and Brown to Smithfield for the Hampton Inn-vitational Sept. 8-9. All three opponents in the four-team round-robin tournament at the Chace Athletic Center are familiar to the Black and Gold. Bryant will be looking for its first win over the Seawolves (0-2) and enter the tournament with a 2-0 all-time record against the Jaspers. The Bulldogs are 2-4 all-time against the crosstown Bears but will be hosting their Ivy League rival for just the second time and first since a 3-2 win in 2009.
Garlacy's squad will wrap up tournament action Sept. 15-16 at the Hofstra Invitational, where the Bulldogs will compete against a trio of Empire State competitors, opening against ACC foe Syracuse before taking on host Hofstra and America East member Binghamton on Saturday.
Single-Match Non-Conference
The Bulldogs will play a single-game buffer between each of their four tournaments, starting out with the team's home opener August 29 against Quinnipiac. Bryant has dominated the series against the Bobcats, holding an 11-1 advantage, but fell in the teams' most recent meeting, 3-0, in 2016.
Bryant will head to the University of New Hampshire for a mid-week matchup Sept. 5 and follow up the Hampton Inn-vitational with an Aug. 12 home contest against familiar foe Holy Cross. Bryant is 11-5 against the Crusaders all-time.
The Black and Gold will stay local after returning from the Hofstra Invitational, taking on intrastate rival Providence College for the 10th-straight season on Sept. 19. Bryant leads the all-time series, 7-5, and is a perfect 5-0 at home against the Friars.
Bryant's final two non-conference contests come during the course of league play, traveling to the Bay State for a Sept. 26 matchup against UMass Lowell following the opening weekend of NEC action and taking on Hartford on the road Oct. 24.
Northeast Conference Play
With a new Friday-Saturday format taking effect for the 2017 NEC slate, the Bulldogs will host St. Francis Brooklyn and LIU Brooklyn to open conference action Sept. 22-23, coinciding with Bryant's Homecoming Weekend. The Black and Gold will remain at home for a Sept. 29 matchup against Central Connecticut.
October action will open up on the road with a trip to Fairleigh Dickinson (Oct. 6) and Sacred Heart (Oct. 7) before returning home to host Robert Morris (Oct. 13) and Saint Francis U. (Oct. 14) for Family and Friends Weekend.
The Bulldogs will remain on the road for the remainder of the month, with rematches slated against the Blue Devils (Oct. 20), the Terriers (Oct. 27) and the Blackbirds (Oct. 28).
Bryant hosts its final home weekend Nov. 3-4 against FDU and Sacred Heart and will celebrate Senior Day against the Pioneers on Saturday at 5 p.m. The Bulldogs will wrap up regular-season action on the road in western Pennsylvania for the second time in three seasons, facing Robert Morris and Saint Francis U. on Nov. 10-11, respectively.
The Bulldogs will look to make their third-straight NEC Tournament appearance in 2017, hosted on Nov. 18-19 by the league's highest seed. For the full 2017 schedule, click here.