The University of Illinois Springfield volleyball team has unveiled its schedule for the 2024 season, including six home matches in the TRAC Arena.

"We are very excited for this season," said Head Coach Kamille Jones. "We have strong returning starters as well as several new additions who bring high-level experience. The schedule is designed to competitively progress and prepare us for our conference segment. We look forward to seeing our amazing home crowd in TRAC again this season!"

UIS will meet SIUE in Edwardsville, Ill. for a preseason exhibition match on Saturday, Aug. 24. 

Regular Season
The Prairie Stars will go on the road for three tournaments early in the season in Texas, Kentucky, and Kansas. Tournament matches against regional opponents include Purdue Northwest on Sept. 6 and Kentucky Wesleyan on Sept. 13. UIS will also meet several opponents for the first time in program history, such as Newman, St. Edwards, and Thomas More. 

Conference play starts in late September with the Prairie Stars hosting Missouri S&T and Maryville during homecoming week, including a Saturday game dedicated to homecoming celebrations.

The Prairie Stars host the Miners for their first home game of the year on Sept. 27. S&T has won the last two contests against UIS, with back-to-back 3-0 wins in Rolla. The Miners finished the 2023 season in 5th place in the GLVC, advanced to the GLVC Tournament semifinals, and made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The Prairie Stars follow that with a matchup against Maryville to celebrate homecoming on Sept. 28. Historically, the Stars have found success against the Saints, but Maryville was able to snap a nine-game losing streak last season with a 3-1 win in St. Louis. The Saints finished the 2023 season in 6th place but fell in the GLVC Tournament semifinals. 

Conference play continues the next week on the road against Truman State and Upper Iowa. UIS was able to gather two wins during this weekend last season, with a 3-0 decision against the Bulldogs and a 3-1 win against the Peacocks. Upper Iowa snuck into the conference tournament in 8th place, but dropped the quarterfinal to powerhouse UMSL. 

The Prairie Stars continue their travels with a rivalry game against Quincy on Oct. 12. Nationally ranked for much of last year, the Hawks swept the Stars 3-0 in 2023. QU finished the regular season in 3rd, but lost in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament. Quincy was able to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, but lost in the first round. 

UIS then visits Hammond, Indiana for the yearly Midwest Regional Crossover on Oct. 18-19. The Prairie Stars have found success in the Crossover, with their last loss coming in 2021. The matchups for the tournmaent will be announced in the coming weeks.

The Prairie Stars wrap up their home schedule against McKendree and last year's national semifinalists, UMSL on Nov. 8-9. UIS faced off against the Bearcats twice last year, in the Bearcat Invitational and GLVC play, but McKendree was able to win 3-1 and 3-0. The Bearcats ultimately missed the conference tournament in 2023. UMSL had a perfect 13-0 record in conference play last season and only lost two matches all season. The Tritons fell in the GLVC Final to Lewis and the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament to Cal State LA. 

Postseason
The GLVC Tournament will return to nearby Williamsville, Ill. this fall. The 43rd annual edition of the event will be hosted at Williamsville High School Fieldhouse from Nov. 22-24. 

Sixty-four teams representing the eight regions begin play in regional tournaments in early December. The winners of each regional then advance to the final site in Sioux Falls, S.D. where the quarterfinals, semifinals and championship match will be played from Dec. 12-14.

Ticket Information
Starting this season, UIS Athletics has partnered with HomeTown Ticketing to streamline the ticket purchasing process. Fans can now buy tickets digitally and scan them via mobile devices at the gate. Season tickets will be available for the first time starting Aug. 19. Single-game tickets will be available starting August 27, with general admission tickets priced at $8. Admission is free for youth ages 12 and under, UIS students with a valid Icard, and UIS faculty and staff. Tickets will be available on the UIS Athletics Box Office webpage or in the HomeTown Fan App (available for iOS and Android).

Streaming
Regular season home games and all games against GLVC opponents will be behind a paywall on the GLVC Sports Network (GLVCSN). Pay-per-view coverage of the GLVC Tournament will also air on GLVCSN. 

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