2022 SCHEDULE

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois volleyball announced its non-conference schedule on Monday (August 1), featuring three tournaments and 13 NCAA Tournament participants from a season ago.

The Illini are set to open the season with a trip to Oxford, Miss., for the Ole Miss Invitational and will kick things off against Georgia Tech on Friday, August 26, before taking on host Ole Miss on Saturday, August 27.

Illinois then heads out west for the Pac-12/Big Ten Challenge, hosted by the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colo., on Sept 3-4. UI faces off against the host Buffaloes on Saturday, Sept. 3 and Washington on Sunday, Sept. 4.

A trip to Dayton, Ohio is next up as the Illini takes on the Dayton Invitational on Sept. 9-10, with a Friday, Sept. 9, match against Missouri State, before taking on Villanova and host Dayton on Saturday, Sept. 10.

The Illini wrap up the non-conference schedule with a pair of matches in Milwaukee, Wis., on Saturday, Sept. 17, first taking on Illinois State, before battling host Marquette later in the day.

The 2022 Big Ten volleyball schedule was previously announced by the conference in June, with the league once again competing in a 20-match conference schedule, with the Illini playing seven teams both home and away and six teams once (three home and three away).  

Here is the breakdown of Illinois' opponents for the 2022 Big Ten schedule:
Home & Away – Maryland, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Penn State, Rutgers, Wisconsin
Home Only – Iowa, Nebraska, Purdue
Away Only – Indiana, Michigan, Ohio State

The Illini begin their quest for a Big Ten Championship with a three-match homestand in Huff Hall against Maryland on September 23, Northwestern on September 24 and Purdue on September 30, before heading to Wisconsin on October 2 for their first conference road trip of the season. Illinois then wraps up league play, as well as the 2022 regular season, with a road trip to Northwestern on November 26.

The Illini are coming off of a 22-12 season in 2021, posting a 12-8 mark in the Big Ten and ranked No. 16 in the final AVCA Division I Coaches Top 25 Poll. Illinois made its third NCAA Regional and fourth NCAA Tournament appearance in five seasons under head coach Chris Tamas after back-to-back wins to open the 2021 NCAA tournament, including a four-set win over 2020-21 National Champion and No. 7 seed Kentucky in Lexington.

Schedule Notes
• 29 total matches
• 10 matches at Huff Hall
• 14 away matches, five neutral-site matches
• Three non-conference tournaments
• Ranked in the final AVCA poll: 11 matches vs. 8 teams
• 2021 Conference Champions/Tournament Champions: 5 (Washington Dayton, Marquette, Illinois State, Wisconsin)
• NCAA Tournament:
    - Qualifiers: 13 (Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, Washington, Dayton, Illinois State, Marquette, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin)
    - Sweet 16: 7 (Georgia Tech, Washington, Ohio State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Purdue, Wisconsin)
    - Elite Eight: 5 (Georgia Tech, Minnesota, Nebraska, Purdue, Wisconsin)
    - Final Four: 2 (Nebraska, Wisconsin)
    - National Runner-Up: 1 (Nebraska)
    - National Champion: 1 (Wisconsin)

• Season opener: August 26 vs. Georgia Tech in Oxford, Miss.   
• Home opener & B1G opener: September 23 vs. Maryland
• B1G road opener: October 2 at Wisconsin
• NCAA Tournament First & Second Rounds: Dec. 1-3 at campus sites
• NCAA Tournament Regionals: Dec. 8-10 at campus sites
• NCAA Tournament Semifinals & Championship: Dec. 15 & 17 at CHI Health Center Omaha in Omaha, Neb.

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