WASHINGTON (August 27, 2026) – Howard University women's volleyball team heads to the Empire State for the Cornell Invitational (Sept. 3-5), hosted by Big Red.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
Bison Nation can follow all the action via live stats and/or ESPN+.
MATCHUP PREVIEWS
HOWARD
HU is seeking its first win of the season after going falling to local opponents Maryland, 3-0, and George Mason, 3-2, at the annual DMV Challenge.
Monday (Aug. 31), the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) uncovered its women's volleyball weekly awards where freshman outside hitter
Addison Buckner (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) won the league's Rookie of the Week honor. She produced 22 kills, 14 digs, four blocks and a service ace against Maryland (Aug. 28) and George Mason (Aug. 30).
In the past two years, HU has reached the MEAC Championship match but came up short against rival Coppin State.
In his 15
th season at the helm, Bison head coach
Shaun Kupferberg took a program that was in disarray when he orchestrated one of the most dramatic turnarounds in school history, struggling through a 1-23 record his first season and posted a 21-11 mark the following year.
CORNELL
Cornell enters the 2026 season with new identity, but familiar expectations. A year ago, the squad leaned heavily on a veteran core that included four senior starters.
In her 11 seasons at the helm, Big Red head coach Trudy Vande Berg has shaped Cornell into a program that consistently competes among the Ivy League's top teams, including four third-place conference finishes.
Cornell enters the season ranked third in the Ivy League preseason poll, behind defending champion Princeton and Yale.
SYRACUSE
Syracuse is also looking for its first win of the season after back-to-back setbacks against Cincinnati (Aug. 29), 3-0, and Illinois (Aug. 30), 3-0.
This season, the Orange represent nine states and three countries outside of the U.S., with five international players.
Bakeer Ganesharatnam enters his fifth season at the helm.
UALBANY
UAlbany competed in the Black Knights Invitational (Aug. 29-30) where they dropped all three contests to Iowa, 3-1, Sacred Heart, 3-0, and host Army, 3-2.
Coming into the year, UAlbany was picked to finish fourth in the 2026 America East Preseason Coaches' Poll.
Josh Pickard enters his eighth season with the Great Danes.
LAST TIMEOUT
HU opened the year with a pair of tough home losses.
Friday (Sept. 28), Howard fell to Maryland in straight sets at Burr Gymnasium to open its 2026 campaign. Sophomore setter
Alexys James (Houston) led Howard with 16 assists and 11 kills, notching a double-double in her sophomore season debut.
Two days later (Sept. 30), Howard battled George Mason in its first five-set match of the season but came up short in a 3-2 setback. Buckner recorded her first career double-double (15 kills & 10 digs) in the matchup, highlighting a strong individual performance for the Bison.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Tuesday (Sept. 8), HU returns to The District to face American at Meltzer Center. Match time is set for 6 p.m.
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at
www.HUBison.com.
