May 22, 2008

Click here for the 2008 Duquesne volleyball schedule

PITTSBURGH - Duquesne volleyball head coach Steve Opperman will participate in four tournaments and face a pair of NCAA Tournament teams as part of their 29-game 2008 schedule released today.

The season begins Labor Day weekend as the Dukes, along with Robert Morris University, host the Duquesne/Robert Morris Invitational. DU will play four games in two days beginning Aug. 29 with a pair of matches against Marist and Saint Francis, Pa. The following morning, Duquesne will face Lehigh and will close out the evening against Loyola, Md.

Sept. 5-6 Duquesne will be in Baltimore, Md. for the UMBC Tournament. They play one match on the first night against Niagara and will face UMBC and Maryland Eastern Shore on the final day of the event.

The volleyball version of "The City Game" will be Sept. 9 as the Dukes make the 1.7-mile trip into Oakland to face Pittsburgh.

DU will return trip to Flagstaff, Ariz. For the second consecutive year for the Fiesta Bowl Tournament Sept. 12-13. Duquesne will face Navy for the first time in 14 years on opening night. The next day, the Dukes will face Hampton in their first game and host Northern Arizona in their second game.

The final tournament of the season is at Kent State Sept. 19-20. DU plays a pair of games on the first day, beginning with Ohio State before taking on the host Golden Flashes. The Dukes will take on Chicago State on the tournament's final day.

DU's longest home stand of the season is five games beginning with the Atlantic 10 Conference opener Sept. 26 as Duquesne host George Washington and Charlotte Sept. 28. The Dukes step out of conference play as Robert Morris will visit the Palumbo Center Sept. 30. The home stand concludes with Temple Oct. 3 and La Salle Oct. 5.

Duquesne will take to the road for the next three matches facing Fordham Oct. 10, Rhode Island Oct. 11 and Saint Louis Oct. 16.

West Virginia will close out the non-conference schedule at Palumbo Oct. 19.

The last six games of the season pair of participants in Xavier Oct. 24 and Dayton Oct. 26, both NCAA Tournament teams last season. DU completes the home-and home series with Saint Louis Nov. 6 and Rhode Island Nov. 7. The regular season ends in Ohio at Dayton Nov. 14 and Xavier Nov. 15.

Eight of Duquesne opponents won 20 or more games last season (Dayton 33-2, Maryland Eastern Shore 24-4, Saint Louis 23-7, Loyola, Md. 22-12, Northern Arizona 21-11, Navy 21-12, UMBC 20-12 and Kent State 20-9).

"With the youth of our team, the schedule is designed to give us looks at different levels of competition to prepare us mentally and physically for the Atlantic 10," said Opperman. "Each preseason tournament that we play will feature teams that will challenge us and give us a taste of different styles of play."

2008 Schedule Quick Facts

• The Atlantic 10 Conference is divided into two five-team conferences
• Duquesne, along with Dayton, Rhode Island, Saint Louis and Xavier comprise the West
• Charlotte, Fordham George Washington, La Salle and Temple make up the East
• Duquesne's opponents combined for 389 wins in 2007
• Chicago State, Hampton and Marist are all first-time opponents of the Dukes.