GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University beach volleyball team has eight tournaments in store, in addition to two stand-alone home doubleheaders as its 2024 schedule.
Going into his fourth season as the program's winningest head coach is Jason Morris. With a 40-34 record, he will look to 17 returners, three freshmen, and three transfers in the pursuit of the program's first national championship.
In 2023, the Pioneers finished with an 11-14 mark, taking on numerous Division I programs, including a top-five LSU. TU won its third-straight SAC Beach Challenge and was a point away from winning the Bronze Playoff A title at the AVCA championship event for the second consecutive campaign.
The Pioneers are set to open the 2024 season with a round robin, hosted by Truett McConnell on February 17. Berry will be the third team joining the tri-match.
The Lady Bears went 10-13 and finished fifth at the season-ending AVCA Small College Championship. TMU has already begun their campaign this season, sitting at an even 2-2. Tusculum has swept both meetings over the Georgia team via doubleheader in 2022 in Greeneville.
The Vikings are coming off of a silver finish at the AVCA event, recording a 16-16 overall mark. In the lone meeting in series history, Tusculum swept the Vikings back in 2022.
Next, Tusculum heads to the Grand Sands Tournament (Feb. 23-24). The Pioneers are scheduled to face Austin Peay State, Liberty's club team, Eastern Kentucky, and Morehead State.
The Governors went 17-12 last season, but will be under new leadership this year. Entering the Atlantic Sun tournament as the seventh-seed, Austin Peay went 1-2 at the event, knocking out EKU. The Pioneers and Govs have played twice in program history, with APSU taking both contests.
The Colonels went an even 15-15, while the Pioneers hold a 3-2 all-time edge in the head-to-head series. EKU ended its 2023 with six-straight losses, including in the double-elimination ASUN Tournament.
The Eagles are under new mentorship this season after finishing 14-13 in 2023. MSU fell in the Ohio Valley Conference championship match to end its campaign. The Eagles and Pioneers have split the six results in series history.
Tusculum's next event is the Badger Beach Bash, running from March 1-2. The Pioneers will square off against Berry for a second time, the host Spring Hill, Stevenson, Hendrix, and Huntingdon.
The Badgers are coming off on a 16-14 season, which ended with an AVCA Silver Bracket runner-up finish. In the lone head-to-head meeting, SHC won 4-1 as part of the 2022 edition of the event.
The Mustangs had a very successful 2023 season, wrapping up with a 26-7 record and a third place finish in the AVCA Division III Championship. Tusculum and Stevenson split the only two meetings between the programs, last occurring in 2020.
The Warriors are the reigning national champions in Division III, beating Berry in a 3-2 overtime thriller. Facing all levels of competition, Hendrix tallied a 16-15 mark, including a 4-0 run at the AVCA Championship. The March meeting will be the first in series history between HC and TU.
The Hawks finished 2023 with an 18-11 record, finalized by a fourth-place finish at the DIII level. Tusculum and Huntingdon have yet to compete head-to-head.
Erskine (Mar. 12) will serve as the opponent in the first of two Pioneer home doubleheaders. The Flying Fleet won their last three matches to finish 7-27 overall in 2023. Tusculum has won all three previous meetings over Erskine, each occurring between 2021-22.
The Pioneers head East for the Coastal Carolina Round Robin (Mar. 15-16). TU has matchups scheduled against Central Arkansas and the hosting Chanticleers.
The Bears went 8-20 last season and will be under new leadership this spring. UCA snuck into the ASUN tournament as the final seed, but suffered consecutive losses to bow out of the postseason. Tusculum won the inaugural meet up in 2023 via a five-set thriller at LSU.
The Sandy Chants are receiving votes in the preseason AVCA poll and will be led by a new head coach. Coastal Carolina is coming off a program-record 25 wins and a trip to the Sun Belt Championship match last season. CCU was nationally ranked for the first time in program history, rising to No. 20 in the AVCA Collegiate Beach Coaches Top 20 Poll. The Pioneers have yet to defeat the Chanticleers in six tries.
Palm Beach Atlantic is the host of the Pioneers' next tournament (Mar. 22-23). TU is scheduled to face Eckerd, Tampa, Barry, and the home Sailfish.
The Tritons went 6-14, including winning their last three, to round out 2023. EC won the Bronze A pool over Tusculum to pull ahead in the series history, 3-2.
Winners of three of the last five AVCA championships, the Spartans finished the 2023 campaign with a 21-13 mark. UT started the season 0-3, including Tusculum's first-ever win over Tampa.
The Barry Buccaneers are making history as the program is in its inaugural year of competition. The Bucs have already played a pair of matches in 2024, dropping a pair of round robin contests.
The Sailfish finished fourth at the 2023 AVCA event behind a 20-14 record. PBA has beaten the Pioneers in each of the first three meetups.
In its final home doubleheader, Tusculum will host Gaston, a junior college, on March 26.
The Scenic City Showdown is the last regular season tournament of 2024, running from April 5-6. The Pioneers have Carson-Newman, a rematch with Austin Peay, host Chattanooga, and Jacksonville State on the docket.
TU has dominated the series history over the rival Eagles (10-3), including a split last season. C-N had a historic season with a plethora of record-breaking performances on the individual side, with a new win and win percentage leader.
The Mocs are coming off of their winningest season in program history, notching a 19-15 record, and a semifinalist finish in the OVC tournament. UTC won the lone meeting over Tusculum back in 2022 by a score of 3-2 in the season opener.
The Gamecocks were winless in 2023, claiming just a handful of sets in the campaign. Tusculum and Jax State met twice between 2019-22, with each team taking a victory.
The 2024 edition of the SAC Beach Challenge makes its return to Greeneville on April 9. The two other South Atlantic Conference schools that sponsor beach volleyball (Carson-Newman and Catawba) will compete round-robin style during the event. Tusculum holds a collective 14-3 advantage over the foes throughout program history.
The AVCA Small College Championship in Tavares, Florida is the season-ending destination for the Pioneers. The three-day tournament will run from April 12-14 at the Hickory Point Beach Sand Volleyball Complex, the home of the Florida Region of USA Volleyball. Teams from Division II and III will play on the facility's 21 professional-grade lighted beach volleyball courts. In four years at the tournament, Tusculum has gone 10-15, won the bronze bracket twice, and added a semifinal finish in the silver.
