EASTON, Mass. (July 14, 2023)- Stonehill Women's Volleyball has announced its complete 2023 schedule, featuring 15 home matches at Merkert Gymnasium. The schedule also features three different tournaments the squad will be partaking in.
"We are super excited to get a chance to play some of our high academic neighbors here in New England," said women's volleyball head coach Craig Martin. "With Harvard, Dartmouth, and Boston College on our schedule along with the University of Rhode Island, we are going to have a great opportunity to play some tough out-of-conference competition that should help us prepare for the NEC. With the addition of teams like Hofstra, Seton Hall, Manhattan, and Moorhead State, who we got a chance to play last season, I think we have a really well-balanced schedule. With a very big roster this year, we filled our schedule with 32 matches, so hopefully we put our student-athletes in a great position to have lots of opportunities to earn playing time and show that we are moving in the right direction as a program."
The Skyhawks will open their second Division I season on the road against Morehead State University and USC Upstate on Aug. 25 and Queen's University on Aug. 26 as part of the Eagle Challenge hosted by Morehead State. After the Eagle Challenge, the Purple and White conclude August by hosting Bryant University for their home opener on Aug. 30.
Stonehill heads back out on the road to start September in the Harvard Invitational starting on Sept. 1 when the squad takes on the hosts, Harvard, and concludes the invitational on Sept. 2 against Holy Cross and the University of New Hampshire. The squad will be facing off against Holy Cross for the first time since 1984 and currently, the series is split 1-1. Stonehill took the first matchup in 1981 and Holy Cross won in 1984. The Purple and White compete in a first-time matchup when the Skyhawks take on Brown University on Sept. 5. The Skyhawks compete in their third tournament when the squad takes part in the Dartmouth Invitational taking on Hofstra University (Sept. 8) then Dartmouth College and Seton Hall University on Sept. 9.
After wrapping up tournament play at the Art Carmichael Invitational against the University of Rhode Island and American University on Sept. 16, Stonehill finishes off its road trip with a contest at ACC member, Boston College on Sept. 17. The Skyhawks and Eagles will be squaring off for the first time in program history.
The Skyhawks return home to Merkert for a season-long four-game homestand led by the Northeast Conference opener against Le Moyne College (Sept. 24). Other matches during the homestand will feature NEC matchups versus Saint Francis University (Sept. 23), Sacred Heart University (Sept. 29), and Central Connecticut State University (Sept. 30).
Stonehill again will be starting a new month on the road when the squad heads out for a couple of road matchups at Manhattan College on Oct. 4 and Merrimack College on Oct. 6. After the brief road trip, the Skyhawks make a quick stop back home against Saint Anselm College on Oct. 11 before heading back out on the road again for two more contests at Fairleigh Dickinson University (Oct. 13) and Long Island University (Oct. 14). Stonehill returns home for a brief time taking on Manhattan College (Oct. 17) and then travels to Saint Francis University where the Purple and White will take on Le Moyne College (Oct. 20) and Saint Francis University (Oct. 21) at Degol Arena in Loretto, Pa.
The Skyhawks finish up the three-game road trip with a matchup at NJIT on Oct. 25 and then return to Merkert for a three-game home set with matchups against Merrimack College (Oct. 27), Fairleigh Dickinson University (Nov. 3), and Long Island University (Nov. 4). The squad then concludes the regular season with road contests at Sacred Heart University (Nov. 10) and Central Connecticut State University ( Nov. 11).
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