VALDOSTA – Head Coach Mike Swan and the Valdosta State volleyball program are pleased to announce their 2017 schedule, during which the Blazers will aim to improve upon the program’s surge of success throughout the last three seasons.

With Swan at the helm and a core of seven returners, the Blazers will kick off the upcoming campaign with a series of contests in Milledgeville, Ga. at Georgia College. The first two days of the season will be jam-packed with three matchups in a 24-hour stretch, beginning with a season opener against Lees-McRae at 3:00 p.m. on September 1st. The follow-up later that day will match the Blazers up against the hosting Bobcats of Georgia College at 7:00 p.m. Day two will pit Valdosta State against Emmanuel at 3:00 p.m. on September 2nd.

Following opening weekend, the Blazers will travel to Aiken, S.C. for another eventful weekend at the USC Aiken Invitational. Valdosta State will compete in a double header for the second straight weekend on September 8th with a matchup against Fayetteville at 3:00 p.m., followed by a 7:00 p.m. showdown with Augusta later that evening. Day two of the tournament will feature two additional matches, as the Blazers face Lander at 10:00 a.m. and conclude competition against USC-Aiken at noon.

“USC Aiken went to the national tournament last year, so that match will be a good test for us early on,” said Swan during a discussion about the layout of the upcoming schedule. “Augusta and Lander also have very good programs, so we are looking forward to facing that good series of competition before conference play begins.”

On September 15th, Valdosta State will anxiously transition into the start of their 2017 home schedule with a doubleheader home opener against the Gulf South Conference’s newly acquired Montevallo at noon, followed by Albany State at 5:00 p.m. The pair of contests will lead into a home skirmish against the rival Wolves of West Georgia on September 16th to conclude opening weekend.

“The energy of our home crowds create a great environment for us,” stated Swan in reference to the advantage of playing within the friendly confines of The Complex. “We’ve been very successful at home in recent years, so there is an expectation placed on our team to win at home. That drives our team to work hard and play with confidence when we play here. We love having good crowds, and we want to give people a reason to keep attending and supporting us. The Complex is by far one of the best venues in the conference, especially when the crowds are into the match.”

Due to the large number of teams now associated with the Gulf South Conference, a new format for the GSC portion of the schedule, dubbed the “Hybrid Schedule”, will be implemented by the league in 2017. Regular season play will no longer pit VSU against every conference school twice, as was the case in years past. Instead, the conference schedule will alter from season to season, with the goal of allowing teams to face each other more or less often during the season, based on geographical location. As such, VSU’s 2017 conference slate will feature a grand total of 16 GSC matchups, ending with home matches against Shorter on November 9th and Lee on November 11th.

League competition will be broken up during the middle of the schedule with the annual GSC/Sunshine State Conference crossover tournament, slated for October 13-14 in Birmingham, Ala. The highly competitive tournament will pit GSC schools against SSC schools throughout two days of competition and will feature many of the top teams in the NCAA Division II South Region.

“The crossover puts us up against some of the best teams in the country each season,” added Swan. “The tournament serves as a good barometer for us to see how we stack up against one of the toughest conferences in Division II. It gives us the opportunity each year to determine whether we are competing at a high level going into the final weeks of our season.”

Season passes for the upcoming season will be available for purchase soon, and ticket pricing information for Valdosta State volleyball can be found HERE. Stay tuned to www.vstateblazers.com for all things Blazer volleyball as the 2017 season quickly approaches.