GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum College volleyball team has released its 2010 schedule announced head coach Michael Robinson. The Pioneers will also be in quest of the program's 700th victory. (2010 Schedule)

The Pioneers are slated to play 29 regular season matches, culminated with the Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament in Salisbury, N.C. Tusculum posted an 18-15 record last year, finishing fifth in the league, while advancing to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time in school history.

It was Tusculum's fourth straight winning season and 19th in the 28-year history of the storied program, which the Pioneers have accounted for a 689-406 overall record.

This year's schedule features 23 matches against teams that posted a winning record in 2008, including 14 against program's that accounted for 20-win campaigns.

Tusculum opens its season Sept. 3-4 as the Pioneers travel to Indiana and the University of Indianapolis Tournament. Tusculum will open the season on Sept. 3 as the Pioneers face West Virginia State University in only the second meeting between the Division II programs. TC won the inaugural contest in 2000. The Yellow Jackets posted a 16-12 record in 2008 and finished fourth in the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Tusculum's remaining three contests at the UIndy Tournament are all against first-time opponents for the Pioneers. Later on Sept. 3, TC will take on Wayne State (Mich.) University. Wayne State posted a 19-9 record and finished third in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference South Division.

On Sept. 4, Tusculum will face nationally-ranked and tournament host Indianapolis. The Greyhounds ended the season ranked sixth in the nation (NCAA II), while posting a 38-2 record. UIndy won the Midwest Region championship to advance to the NCAA II Elite Eight, where the Greyhounds lost in the quarterfinals to eventual national champion Concordia-St. Paul.

Tusculum will close out its trip to Indianapolis with its first-ever meeting with Nova Southeastern University. The Sharks went 19-11 last season to finish third in the Sunshine State Conference and earned a berth to the NCAA Tournament.

The Pioneers will open SAC play with three straight league contests on the road. On Sept. 7, Tusculum travels to cross-mountain rival Mars Hill College. The Pioneers lead the all-time series 21-14 with the Lions as the teams split last year's two matches.

On Sept. 10, Tusculum ventures to Brevard College to face the Tornados, who went 15-15 last season. TC has won five of the previous seven outings against Brevard, including a split of last year's two meetings. Tusculum will close out the three-match road swing at Lenoir-Rhyne University on Sept. 11. Tusculum swept last year's two encounters and has won six in a row over the Bears to lead the series 18-12.

Tusculum's first three home matches will all be against teams that advanced to last year's NCAA Tournament. The Pioneers' home opener will be against arch-rival Carson-Newman College on Sept. 14. The Lady Eagles (18-12 in 2008) won both meetings last season to take a 20-18 lead in the all-time series.

Catawba College (17-12 in 2008) visits Pioneer Arena on Sept. 17. Tusculum swept the two regular matches against the Catawba Indians, but the Tribe defeated the Pioneers in the quarterfinal round of the Food Lion SAC Tournament.

Defending conference champion Wingate University is Tusculum's next opponent on Sept. 18. The Bulldogs posted an impressive 36-2 worksheet in 2008 that included a SAC Tournament title and finished runner-up in the NCAA II Southeast Regional. Wingate won all three meetings with Tusculum in 2008, including a first round win in the NCAA Tournament.

Tusculum steps out of conference play on Sept. 21 with a trip to Bristol, Tenn. and a contest against in-state foe King College. The Tornado (29-12 in 2008) advanced to the NCCAA Nationals and this will be the first meeting between the two programs since 2007.

The Pioneers return home on Sept. 28 to face long-time rival Lincoln Memorial University. The Lady Railsplitters (22-10) advanced to the SAC Tournament semifinals and the NCAA Tournament last season. Tusculum and LMU split the two meetings last year.

Tusculum travels to the Palmetto State the weekend of Oct. 1-2 for a pair of conference tilts. On Oct. 1, TC is at Newberry College. The Pioneers split last year's two matches to take a 13-12 lead in the all-time series. The next day, Tusculum will face South Atlantic Conference newcomer Anderson University. The Trojans posted a 22-13 record last season and finished fourth on Conference Carolinas. Tusculum leads the series with Anderson, 5-1.

The Pioneers open a five-match home-stand on Oct. 5 as Tusculum welcomes Limestone College. The Saints went 21-15 last season and finished runner-up in the Conference Carolinas Tournament. Tusculum leads the series 4-1, including a thrilling five-set victory at Limestone in last year's meeting.

Tusculum will host Brevard and Lenoir-Rhyne in rematches on Oct. 8 and Oct. 9, respectively. Mars Hill comes to Pioneer Arena on Oct. 12, followed by a rematch with King on Oct. 15. The Pioneers travel to Banner Elk, N.C. on Oct. 16 for a tri-match with Southeast Region foes Lees-McRae College and Erskine College. Lees-McRae posted an impressive 29-6 record to win the Conference Carolinas title and advance to the NCAA Tournament. The Bobcats defeated Tusculum 3-1 in last year's meeting to even the all-time series at 3-3. The Tusculum/Erskine contest will be the first-ever meeting between the Pioneers and the Flying Fleet.

Tusculum will be on the road for three straight matches against Catawba (Oct. 22), Wingate (Oct. 23) and Carson-Newman (Oct. 26). The Pioneers return home on the weekend of Oct. 29-30 when they host Newberry and Anderson. On Nov. 2, the Pioneers will travel to Harrogate, Tenn. for a rematch with Lincoln Memorial. Tusculum has won four straight contests on LMU's home floor.

The Pioneers will close out the regular season on Nov. 6 with a tri-match in Augusta, Ga. Tusculum will face host Augusta State University, as well as Valdosta State University. Tusculum and ASU split last year's two meetings as the Pioneers lead the series 6-2 against the Jaguars. The contest with Valdosta State will be the second recorded meeting between the Pioneers and Blazers and the first since 1998.

Tusculum will compete at the Food Lion SAC Tournament on Nov. 12-14 in Salisbury with the winner of the tournament earning the league's automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament. The NCAA Southeast Regional will be held at Nov. 18-21 at campus site yet to be determined. The NCAA National Championship will be hosted by Bellarmine University in Louisville, Ky., in conjunction with the DII National Championship Fall Festival.

- TC -

2010 Tusculum College Volleyball Schedule

Date Opponent Time
Sep. 3-4 at University of Indianapolis Tournament, Indianapolis, Ind.
Fri., Sep. 3 vs. West Virginia State 9 a.m.
Fri., Sep. 3 vs. Wayne State (Mich.) 6 p.m.
Sat., Sep. 4 at Indianapolis 11 a.m.
Sat., Sep. 4 vs. Nova Southeastern 3:30 p.m.

Tue., Sep. 7 at Mars Hill* 7 p.m.
Fri., Sep. 10 at Brevard* 7 p.m.
Sat., Sep. 11 at Lenoir-Rhyne* 2 p.m.
Tue., Sep. 14 CARSON-NEWMAN* 6:30 p.m.
Fri., Sep. 17 CATAWBA* 7 p.m.
Sat., Sep. 18 WINGATE* 2 p.m.
Tue., Sep. 21 at King 7 p.m.
Tue., Sep. 28 LINCOLN MEMORIAL* 6:30 p.m.

Fri., Oct. 1 at Newberry* 7 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 2 at Anderson* 2 p.m.
Tue., Oct. 5 LIMESTONE 6:30 p.m.
Fri., Oct. 8 BREVARD* 7 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 9 LENOIR-RHYNE* Noon
Tue., Oct. 12 MARS HILL* 7 p.m.
Fri., Oct. 15 KING 7 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 16 at Lees-McRae TBA
Sat., Oct. 16 vs. Erskine (at Banner Elk, N.C.) TBA
Fri., Oct. 22 at Catawba* 7 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 23 at Wingate* 2 p.m.
Tue., Oct. 26 at Carson-Newman* 6:30 p.m.
Fri., Oct. 29 NEWBERRY* 7 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 30 ANDERSON* Noon

Tue., Nov. 2 at Lincoln Memorial* 6:30 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 6 at Augusta State TBA
Sat., Nov. 6 vs. Valdosta State (at Augusta, Ga.) TBA
Nov. 12-14 at South Atlantic Conference Tournament, Salisbury, N.C. TBA
Nov. 18-21 NCAA Division II Regional, Campus Site TBA
Dec. 2-4 at NCAA Division II Championship Festival, Louisville, Ky. TBA

* South Atlantic Conference Match
Home Matches in BOLD
All Times Eastern & Subject to Change