Missouri State begins the 2018 volleyball season this weekend in the Palmetto State, taking on a challenging field in the Hampton Inn Charleston/West Ashley CofC Classic.
The Bears, who are coming off their 10th NCAA Tournament appearance since 2003 and eighteenth 20-win season in the last 19 years, face host College of Charleston at 5 p.m. Friday before playing Alabama at 9 a.m. Saturday followed by Western Kentucky at 2:30 that afternoon.
Missouri State is picked to finish second in the Missouri Valley Conference this season after claiming the last two league titles, and play a stiff non-conference schedule that includes the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational at home on Aug. 31 and Sept. 1, a visit to Kansas State on Sept. 4, and trips to tournament at Texas A&M (Sept. 6-7) and Nebraska (Sept. 14-15).
The Opponents
College of Charleston went 27-6 last season, won the Colonial Athletic Association regular season title, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The Cougars earned four first-place votes in the CAA this year, narrowly missing the top spot in the preseason poll, and boast a pair of preseason all-league players in senior setter Allison Beckman and senior right side Kennedy Madison.
Alabama went 18-14 in 2017 and is picked to finish 12th in the Southeastern Conference this year.
Western Kentucky is picked to win its fifth consecutive Conference USA title, and finished 31-4 last season with a trip to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Hilltoppers are receiving votes in the initial AVCA Coaches Poll, and senior middle hitter Rachel Anderson in the CUSA preseason Player of the Year.
Series Histories
Missouri State and Charleston have never played in volleyball. The Bears are 8-3 all-time against current members of the Colonial Athletic Association, most recently a 3-0 win against Northeastern in the 2013 season opener.
The Bears are 2-0 against Alabama, with wins over the Crimson Tide in 1978 and 1979. MSU head coach
Melissa Stokes owns seven wins against Southeastern Conference teams in her tenure.
MSU is 1-1 versus Western Kentucky, with the teams each winning on the other's home floor in 2014 and 2015. The Bears took the most recent match, 3-2 in Bowling Green.
