IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa head volleyball coach Bond Shymansky announced the 2016 schedule on Thursday. The Hawkeyes are scheduled to host two tournaments and play 10 home matches against Big Ten opponents on Mediacom Court inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
The Hawkeyes begin the year with a tournament at Northern Illinois on Aug. 27-28, before opening their home slate with the Iowa Invitational on Sept. 2-3. After traveling to Ames, Iowa, for the Iowa State Invitational on Sept. 9-10, Iowa closes out non-conference action with a home tournament on Sept. 16-17.
Iowa opens its Big Ten slate in the state of Michigan. The Hawkeyes take on the Spartans in East Lansing on Sept. 23, and travel to Ann Arbor for a match against the Wolverines on Sept. 24. The Hawkeyes return home for a midweek matchup against Maryland on Sept. 28, before making the short bus trip to Northwestern on Oct. 1.
The Hawkeyes host back-to-back Big Ten contests against Purdue and Indiana on Oct. 7-8. After a playing at Maryland (Oct. 14) and Ohio State (Oct. 15), the Hawkeyes return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena for a four-match home stand with contests against Minnesota (Oct. 21), Wisconsin (Oct. 22), Northwestern (Oct. 28), and Illinois (Oct. 29).
A four-game road trip follows with matches at Rutgers (Nov. 4), Penn State (Nov. 5), Nebraska (Nov. 9), and Purdue (Nov. 12). The Hawkeyes then return to Iowa City to host Rutgers on Nov. 16 and Nebraska on Nov. 19.
After a short trip to Madison, Wisconsin, on Nov. 23, the Hawkeyes close out Big Ten play, hosting Michigan State on Nov. 26.
Iowa returns 11 student-athletes to the 2016 roster, including juniors Annika Olsen (libero) and Jess Janota (middle), and seniors Loxley Keala (setter), Lauren Brobst (outside), and Ashley Mariani (outside/middle) each of whom started all 33 matches last season. Sophomores Libby Koukol (22 starts/defensive specialist), Reagan Davey (16 starts/right side), and Reghan Coyle (8 starts/right side), and senior defensive specialist Alyssa Klostermann (11 starts) also registered starts for the Hawkeyes last year.
To view the complete volleyball schedule, visit the Iowa volleyball schedule page on hawkeyesports.com.