May 3, 2005

LAS VEGAS - The UNLV volleyball schedule has been released and on the 2005 slate are four tournaments, a road trip to visit in-state rival Nevada, Reno and 16 Mountain West Conference matches. The Rebels will host the UNLV Volleyball Classic at the Cox Pavilion on September 9th and 10th. Joining UNLV in the Classic will be Long Beach State, Rutgers, Illinois and Louisville. The Cox will also be home to eight Mountain West Conference matches, which includes a visit from new league member, TCU. Rounding out the season, the MWC Tournament will be hosted by UNLV from November 22-26.

On this year's schedule are matches with San Diego, Saint Mary's (Calif.) and Colorado State. All three schools were ranked in the American Volleyball Coaches Association's (AVCA) Final Top 25. San Diego finished ranked the highest amongst UNLV's 2005 opponents with a #12 ranking, while Saint Mary's was 13th and Colorado State was 19th. Schools that received votes and placed outside of the top 25 were Santa Clara, Long Beach State and Utah.

Overall, UNLV will play 11 matches against squads that reached the 2004 NCAA Volleyball Tournament. Besides the previously mentioned schools in or on the cusp of the top 25; Cal State Northridge, UC Irvine, Arkansas, Illinois and Nevada, Reno round out the 11 postseason qualifiers.

The Rebels are coming off of one of their best seasons in the program's history. Since the revitalization of the volleyball program in 1996, UNLV had only one winning season. The 1998 team finished with a 23-8 record. The 2004 squad finished with a 15-12 mark. Last year's team set a team-high in MWC conference wins with eight, as well. Previously, the Rebels had a high of six conference wins that had been achieved twice in 2001 and in 2002.

2005 UNLV Volleyball Schedule

Aug. 26-27 @ Fremont Investment & Loan Invitational  (Northridge, Calif.)Aug. 26   @ Saint Mary's (Calif.)       5 pmAug. 27   vs. Arizona State         10:30 amAug. 27   vs. Saint Mary's (CA.)        5 pm

Sept. 2-3     @ Holiday Inn Costa Mesa/Sunset Classic  (Irvine, Calif.)Sept. 2  @ UC Irvine                   7 pmSept. 3  vs. Santa Clara       11 amSept. 3  vs. Southern Miss      5 pm

Sept. 9-10 UNLV Volleyball Classic   (UNLV)Sept. 9  Illinois                    7 pmSept. 10     Rutgers                         11 amSept. 10     Long Beach State           5 pm

Sept. 15-17 @ Univ. of San Diego Invitational  (San Diego, Calif.)Sept. 15     @ San Diego                 7 pmSept. 16     vs. Arkansas                   12 pmSept. 17     vs. American                5 pm

Sept. 22      Wyoming*                    7 pmSept. 24     Colorado State*                 7 pmSept. 30     @ New Mexico*                   6 pm
Oct. 1    @ Air Force*                    6 pmOct. 7       San Diego State*           7 pmOct. 14      TCU*                    7 pmOct. 17      @ Nevada, Reno                7 pmOct. 21  @ Utah*                     6 pmOct. 22      @ BYU*                      6 pmOct. 27      Air Force*                  7 pmOct. 29      New Mexico*                     7 pm
Nov. 4    @ Colorado State*          6 pmNov. 5       @ Wyoming*                  6 pmNov. 9       @ San Diego St*            7 pmNov. 12      @ TCU*                      5 pmNov. 18      Utah*                   7 pmNov. 19      BYU*                    7 pm
Nov. 22- 26 MWC Championships - UNLV     TBA

* Indicates Mountain West Conference match.All home games in the Cox Pavilion.All game times are listed in Pacific Standard Time.Game times are tentative and subject to change.