July 6, 2009
Terps open at home, host pair of tournaments.
COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The University of Maryland volleyball program has officially released its 2009 schedule, head coach Tim Horsmon announced Monday. This year’s slate features some local flare, as the Terps begin the season with four tournaments in the area, including two that will be played at Comcast Pavilion.
The season opens August 28 in College Park for the first of two tournaments to take place on campus. The Terps’ first opponent is Stony Brook, followed the next day with matches against Youngstown State and Villanova.
A bevy of local programs will participate in the Battle of Baltimore the following weekend, with teams playing a pair of matches Friday at Navy and another pair Saturday at Towson. The Terps will face Towson and Navy Friday in Annapolis before opposing Morgan State and Loyola Saturday at Towson.
Maryland makes the short trip south to Washington, D.C., September 11-12 to play in Georgetown’s Tournament. Maryland will play Hampton Friday evening, followed the next day by matches against William & Mary and host Georgetown.
Non-conference play concludes the weekend of September 18 for the second tournament to be played in Comcast Pavilion. Virginia Commonwealth is Maryland’s Friday opponent, as the Terps and Rams will meet one another for the third consecutive season. Howard and UMBC are Maryland’s Saturday opponents.
Of the Terps’ first 13 opponents, 10 hail from Maryland, Washington, D.C., or Virginia.
The Atlantic Coast Conference season begins Tuesday, Sept. 22 at Boston College. Home conference play begins with Duke coming to College Park Friday and Wake Forest in town Saturday.
For the second straight year, the ACC will play a 20-match regular season with no conference tournament. Maryland will play a home-and-home series with every ACC school except Virginia and Virginia Tech, both of whom the Terps will only face at home. Due to the unbalanced schedule, the Terps will play 11 home matches and nine road matches.
The Terps begin a stretch of four consecutive road matches October 1 at North Carolina, followed the next day with a match at NC State. Maryland is at Georgia Tech and Clemson the following weekend.
Once finished with the two-week road stretch, the Terps will play eight of the next 10 matches at home.
Florida State and Miami are in town the weekend of October 16. The Friday match with the Seminoles will be played at 4:45 p.m. on the main basketball floor of Comcast Center as part of the University’s “Maryland Madness” celebration to kick off the start of basketball season.
Virginia and Virginia Tech follow Florida State and Miami the next weekend and then the Terps travel to Wake Forest and Duke before returning to College Park for another two-week home stretch.
Clemson and Georgia Tech are in town November 6 and November 8, respectively, and North Carolina and NC State are in town the following weekend.
Maryland finishes the road portion of its schedule in Florida, taking on Miami November 20 and Florida State November 22.
Boston College is Maryland’s Senior Night opponent this season, traveling to College Park for the regular-season finale the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.
The NCAA Tournament begins December 4 and runs through December 19.
click here to view Maryland's schedule: http://www.umterps.com/sports/w-volley/sched/md-w-volley-sched.html
