WASHINGTON (July 24, 2019) – The Howard University (HU) women's volleyball program is 37 days away from the first serve of the 2019 season. The four-time Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Champions will embark on a slate that features 18 matches on the road and eleven matches in Burr Gymnasium.
 
Howard opens the season with annual D.C. Challenge hosted by George Washington University on Friday, Aug. 30 to Saturday, Aug. 31. During the two-day event, HU will take on Hartford and American on Friday and tournament host GW on Saturday.
 
The first single match of the season will take place in College Park, Md., against the University of Maryland on Monday, Sept. 2. This will be the first Big Ten opponent of the year.
 
"Our preseason will be a great challenge to our young team this year.  We have a short time to put a lot of pieces together but we are looking forward to the challenge," stated head volleyball coach Shaun Kupferberg.
 
For the second two-day tournament of the season, the squad will head to the Big Apple for the Jack Jaiser Volleyball Classic hosted by St. John's University on Friday, Sept. 6 and Saturday, Sept. 7. While in Queens, N.Y., the Bison will face Columbia and Canasius on Friday and closeout with St. John's on Saturday.
 
Bison volleyball opens home competition against Loyola (Md.) on Tuesday, Sept. 10. The Greyhounds concluded the 2018 season with the programs first-ever appearance in the Patriot League Championships since joining the conference for the 2013 season.
 
During the weekend of Sept. 13 and Sept. 14, HU ventures to the west coast for the USC's Trojan Invitational in Los Angeles, Calif. Howard opens the event with Villanova on Friday and completes the event with USC and Yale on Saturday.
 
"The trip to California will be an opportunity to compete against the best on the road; something that hopefully will prepare us for future road matches," said Kupferberg. 
 
Howard returns to the District to welcome Mississippi and Rutgers to Burr Gymnasium on Friday, Sept. 20 and Saturday, Sept. 21, respectively.
 
On a weekend of first, both Ole Miss of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and Rutgers of the Big Ten, will have inaugural visits to Howard University.
 
The last non-conference match of the season is against Georgetown on the Hoyas campus on Sunday, Sept. 22
 
"The MEAC has been perpetually improving and this year and it's an open race.  Everyone has picked up a lot of talent and we will have to step up our training to match their level of play," said Kupferberg. 
 
MEAC play kicks off in Florida with the Bison facing Bethune-Cookman (Friday, Sept. 27) and Florida A&M (Sunday, Sept. 29).
 
Howard will play a majority of its contents at home during October, but kicks off the month in Dover, Del., on Friday, Oct. 5 (Delaware State) followed by a short trip to Princess Anne, Md., on Sunday, Oct. 6 (Maryland –Eastern Shore).
 
HU will host the next matches featuring Morgan State (Tuesday, Oct. 8), Coppin State (Sunday, Oct. 13), Norfolk State (Friday, Oct. 18), North Carolina Central (Friday, Oct. 25), and North Carolina A&T State (Sunday, Oct. 27).
 
Again, opening the month on the road, Howard will venture to Baltimore, Md., with Morgan State (Friday, Nov. 1) and Coppin State (Sunday, Nov. 3).
 
On Friday, Nov. 8 and Sunday, Nov. 10 will host Delaware State and Maryland – Eastern Shore, respectively. The last away of the regular season will take place in Norfolk State on Tuesday, Nov. 12, and the last home of the game of the season, which will be our senior night, will be Friday, Nov. 15 against South Carolina State.
 
For the second year in the row, Howard will host the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Championships on Friday, Nov. 22 through Sunday, Nov. 24 in Burr Gymnasium.
 
Women's volleyball game-by-game tickets go on sale Thursday, Aug. 1 through www.BisonTickets.com, where fans can purchase a game ticket for $5.00 (youth and seniors) and $8.00 (adults).
 
For more information about Howard University women's volleyball visit www.HUBison.com.
 
About Howard University Athletics
The Howard University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics sponsors 19 NCAA Division I men and women varsity sports. The programs represent six conferences: the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association (CCSA), Sun Belt Conference, Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) and Atlantic Sun (ASUN) Conference. Visit www.hubison.com to learn more.