Women's Volleyball | 7/18/2017 2:07:00 PM

ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT volleyball team will play 32 regular season contests, as its 2017 season schedule was announced on Tuesday, July 18. RIT will play nine teams that were regionally ranked in 2016 and six who advanced to the NCAA Tournament over a grueling eight-week stretch.
 
"Our schedule should prepare us to be ready to compete for the Liberty League championship," said RIT head coach Jim Lodes, who enters his 13th season at the university. "We will see regionally ranked teams when we travel to Western Connecticut, Boston, Gallaudet and during the New York State Regional Challenge."
 
The Tigers, who advanced to the Liberty League Semifinals in 2016, open the 2017 season by heading to the Western Connecticut State Colonial Classic Tournament on Sept. 1-2. RIT will play Simmons College, Penn State Berks, Wentworth Institute of Technology and the hosts. The following weekend, the Tigers head to Tufts University and Brandeis University for the New England Invitational. There, RIT will take on Anna Maria College, Brandeis and 2016 NCAA Tournament participants Tufts and UMass Boston.
 
RIT returns home on Sept. 16 to host D'Youville College and Medaille College in the three-team RIT Invitational before making the short trip to take on former Empire 8 rival St. John Fisher College on Sept. 19. The Tigers will also host a six-team invitational on Oct. 13-14 during Brick City Homecoming & Family Weekend. RIT will host two NCAA Tournament teams from 2016, The College at Brockport and Springfield College, in addition to SUNY Geneseo.

"I'm really excited that our RIT Invitational during Brick City Homecoming and Family Weekend has such a strong group of teams," said Lodes.

Also in non-conference play, RIT hosts Rochester on Sept. 26, before heading to the Worthington Classic hosted by Gallaudet University on Sept. 29-30. There, RIT will take on Montclair State University, Nichols College, DeSales University and Kean University. RIT will also travel to Nazareth College on Oct. 11 and Brockport on Oct. 24 for single, non-conference contests. The Tigers wrap up the regular season with the New York State Regional Challenge hosted by Rochester on Oct. 27-28. RIT will face SUNY Cortland, Montclair St. and New York University, three of the better teams in the region.

The Tigers begin Liberty League play on Sept. 22-23, with single matches at Vassar College and Bard College. With 2016 NCAA Tournament participant Ithaca College joining the Liberty League this season, RIT will play each league opponent one time, as opposed to twice in previous seasons. RIT hosts five-time defending Liberty League Champion Clarkson University on Oct. 6 before making the trip to face St. Lawrence University the following afternoon.
 
RIT will have a very important four-day stretch in mid-October with three crucial Liberty League matches, all at Clark Gym. On Oct. 18, Liberty League newcomer Ithaca invades Clark Gym, while Union College and Skidmore College come to Rochester on Oct. 20-21 to wrap up the league schedule.
 
The top four teams in the Liberty League standings will meet at the top seed with the semifinals taking place on Nov. 3 and championship on Nov. 4. The Liberty League Tournament Championship will receive an automatic berth into the 2017 NCAA Division III Tournament.
 
RIT finished with 21 wins in 2016 and advanced to the Liberty League Semifinals.