Graystone Reveals 2019 Volleyball Campaign

LUBBOCK, Texas – Looking to further the Red Raiders' upward trend, Texas Tech volleyball head coach Tony Graystone announced on Friday the program's 2019 volleyball schedule, which features 12 matches at United Supermarkets Arena and five matches against 2018 NCAA Tournament teams.

Taking on a strong schedule, five of the Red Raiders' non-conference opponents finished the 2018 season with a top-100 RPI and seven Big 12 opponents finished with a 77 RPI or higher.

"I'm really looking forward to the preseason schedule," Graystone said. "We're on the road for the first three weekends and playing against some great competition, so we're going to be tested right away. As a program, we've been making an effort every year to improve the quality of our non-conference schedule and the 2019 schedule definitely does that."

Graystone and the Red Raiders will begin their season on the road and will remain away for the first 10 matches of the season. First on the slate is a tournament at Ohio State, where the team will face VCU, Lehigh and the hosting Buckeyes on August 30-31 in Columbus, Ohio.

From there the Red Raiders travel to the campus of Northwestern University on Sept. 6-7 for competition against Stephen F. Austin – a participant in the 2018 NCAA Tournament – Austin Peay and the Wildcats. Two days after the conclusion of the tournament, the Red Raiders will trek to DeKalb, Ill., for a non-conference match at Northern Illinois.

The Red Raiders will embark on its last preseason trip on Sept. 13-14 and will go head-to-head against Pacific, Idaho and tournament host UNLV in Las Vegas.

"We're going to get a lot of time together on the road right away, which I think always helps a team grow and get closer," Graystone said. "We're going to be playing in a couple of really tough environments and that will really prepare us for the Big 12."

Tech will make its home debut at United Supermarkets Arena on Monday, Sept. 16, with an evening match against ACU and is set to close out the preseason with the Red Raider Classic – which features matches against Houston, Incarnate Word and UTEP – on Sept. 20-21.

"We are definitely excited about hosting the Red Raider Classic and I know that by the time we get to week four, the team will be really fired up to finally play at home," Graystone explained. "It's going to be a fun weekend. We're bringing in three other schools from Texas and we're excited to have them at the USA."

Big 12 Conference play beings on Sept. 25 and the Red Raiders will close out their five-game homestand against West Virginia. Tech will finish the month of September at Texas, the 2018 Big 12 Champion and an NCAA Quarterfinalist, on Sept. 28.

October will hold trips to Kansas State (Oct. 2), Iowa State (Oct. 12) and NCAA Tournament participant Baylor (Oct. 19), as well as four home matches against TCU (Oct. 6), Kansas (Oct. 16), Oklahoma (Oct. 26) and Texas (Oct. 30).

Graystone's Red Raiders will start the last month of the regular season on a return trip to Kansas on Nov. 6 and will play three other away matches at Oklahoma (Nov. 13), West Virginia (Nov. 16) and TCU (Nov. 23). The month of November holds Tech's last three home matches, beginning with an afternoon contest against Baylor on Nov. 9 and a Nov. 20 matchup against Iowa State.

Senior Day will serve as Tech's final match of the regular season and the squad will square off against Kansas State on Saturday, Nov. 30, at United Supermarkets Arena.

"Our number one goal is to make improvements in the Big 12 with the ultimate goal of making the NCAA tournament," Graystone said. "The Big 12 is always one of the best conferences in the nation, but the conference looks to be especially strong this season. I'm extremely optimistic about our 2019 team and believe we've got a talented group that will compete every night and be very successful."

Season tickets will be made available at a later date through the Olympic Sports Pass, which includes admission to all home events in volleyball, soccer, softball and track & field. Individual tickets will be available for purchase in advance online or through the Athletic Ticket Office.

For all the latest information on the Texas Tech volleyball team, visit TexasTech.com or follow @TexasTechVB on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Texas Tech University Athletics

Graystone Reveals 2019 Volleyball Campaign

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