MOSCOW, Idaho—Following an unusual spring season the Idaho Volleyball team and Head Coach
Debbie Buchanan are excited to announce the remainder of 2021 schedule that features the non-conference slate. The Big Sky Conference announced the conference schedule last week. In the spring 2021 season the Vandals finished 6-11 overall and 5-9 in league play, advancing to the Big Sky Conference tournament for the seventh consecutive season.
The Vandals will host the Idaho Volleyball Classic to kick-off the 2021 season on August 27 and 28 in Memorial Gym. The tournament will feature three games for the Vandals against Portland, Nevada, and Grand Canyon.
After the home tournament the squad will participate in three more non-conference tournaments before beginning Big Sky play.
The Vandals will travel to Moon Township, Pennsylvania Sept. 3-4, to face Duquesne, Robert Morris and Liberty.
Next, Idaho will take a trip to Denver, Colorado to face Cal State Fullerton, Air Force and Denver Sept. 10-11.
The squad will round out the non-conference slate with a trip to Brookings, South Dakota to take on Drake, South Dakota State and Southeastern Louisiana Sept. 17-18.
"I am really excited with our preseason schedule," said Buchanan "I think it's a good mix of RPI teams for us considering we are going to be fairly young in some of our positions."
The non-conference slate features two teams in the RPI top-100 and six in the top-200. Grand Canyon is the highest ranked non-conference opponent for the Vandals with a 55 RPI ranking. Denver is right behind the Lopes at 56 in the RPI.
The Big Sky slate will open at home with a pair road matches against Northern Arizona and Southern Utah on Sept. 23 and 25, respectively. The Vandals next four conference matches take place at home as Idaho hosts Portland State (Sept. 30), Sacramento State (Oct. 2), Montana (Oct. 7) and Montana State (Oct. 9).
After the four-game home stand the Vandals will head to Greeley, Colorado to take on Northern Colorado on Oct. 12 for a quick road trip before hosting Eastern Washington in Memorial Gym on Oct. 14.
The next week Idaho will travel to Ogden, Utah to face the defending Big Sky Champion Weber State Wildcats on Oct. 21, and will take on Idaho State in Pocatello, Idaho on Oct. 23.
Idaho will return home season the next week, hosting Southern Utah (Oct. 28) and Northern Arizona (Oct. 30).
Three consecutive road matches and a final home contest will complete the regular season for the Vandals, beginning with contests against Montana State and Montana on No. 4 and 6, respectively. A quick trip to Eastern Washington on Nov. 9, caps the road schedule. The final regular season game will see the Vandals host Northern Colorado on Nov. 13, on Senior Night.
The 2021 Big Sky Conference tournament will take place Nov. 18 – 20 for the top eight teams in the conference. The 2021 regular season champion will serve as the host for the conference tournament.
Factoring in both conference and non-conference opponents, the Vandals will face 12 top-200 RPI teams this season. Weber State features the best, ranked sixth in the RPI. Additionally, Northern Arizona and Northern Colorado are 23 and 27, respectively.
The Idaho Volleyball Classic and all eight conference home matches will be played inside Memorial Gym. All regular season home games, as well as all Big Sky games, will be streamed live on ESPN+. More information on the streaming of other road contests will be available as the games get closer. Current home game times are available but are subject to change.
SEASON TICKETS ON SALE JULY 19
General admission season tickets will be available for purchase beginning on July, 19. Fans interested in purchasing new season tickets, and current season ticket holders wishing to renew, can do so by logging on to
GoVandals.com/tickets, visiting the Idaho Athletics Ticket Office or calling 208-885-6466.
Single game tickets will be available for purchase beginning August 9.
FOLLOW THE VANDALS
For updates on Idaho Volleyball, follow the Vandals on Twitter @IdahoVolleyball.
For more information on Idaho Athletics, visit GoVandals.com. Fans can also find Idaho on Twitter and Instagram (@Idaho_Vandals), or on Facebook by searching Idaho Vandals.