Texas Border Business
RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Department of Intercollegiate Athletics announced on Tuesday that the volleyball team will host the 2022 Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Tournament after playing a schedule that features 29 matches, including 11 at home.
This is the second time UTRGV has hosted the WAC Tournament after doing so in 2017. UTRGV welcomed two of the nine largest crowds in program history during that tournament, including a then-program record 1,634 fans for the championship match against CSU Bakersfield, a total that now ranks second, and 1,256 fans for the semifinal match against Utah Valley, a figure that ranked third at the time and now ranks ninth in program history.
In total, the Vaqueros will host 19 matches at the UTRGV Fieldhouse, including matches as part of both a non-conference tournament Sept. 9-10 and the WAC Tournament Nov. 17-19.
Season tickets, which include tickets to all 19 matches, are on sale now and can be purchased online at UTRGVTickets.com or by contacting the UTRGV Athletics Ticket Office team of Ryela Rodriguez (956-329-0884) and Eddie Galvan (956-222-2935) over the phone or through email at tickets@utrgv.edu.
“We’re super excited to be hosting the WAC Tournament.” UTRGV head coach Todd Lowery said. “The last time we hosted we had a super fun environment, and it was great for our young women to participate in that. I think for the community to see a weekend of championship-style volleyball is so much fun, and to have it here on our campus is great.”
UTRGV opens the season at the North Texas Invite with matches against UNLV, Jacksonville, and North Texas Aug. 26-27 before playing the home opener against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi as part of the South Texas Showdown, presented by Navy Army Community Credit Union, on Aug. 30.
UTRGV takes part in the Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic with matches against UTSA, host Louisiana and Arkansas-Pine Bluff Sept. 2-3 and visits Texas A&M-Corpus Christi as part of the South Texas Showdown, presented by Navy Army Community Credit Union, on Sept. 6 before returning home to host a four-match tournament. UTRGV hosts Montana on Sept. 9 and 10 and Prairie View A&M on Sept. 10, while Montana faces Prairie View A&M to open the tournament on Sept. 9.
UTRGV closes out non-conference play with the Red Raider Classic against SMU, host Texas Tech, and Oral Roberts Sept. 16-17 and a trip to UTEP on Sept. 20.
“It’s important for us to have a really competitive non-conference schedule to get ready for WAC play,” Lowery said. “As the WAC continues to develop, we need to continue to develop our non-conference schedule to keep up with it. Having teams like Texas Tech and UTSA on the schedule will be fun. Louisiana just continues to get better. I expect them to be at the top of the Sun Belt Conference this year. We have the showdown against Corpus Christi and a match at UTEP as well. Those were tremendously competitive matches last year. There are a lot of fun matches on the schedule that are going to get us ready for WAC play.”
UTRGV opens WAC play with three-straight home matches, including Sept. 24 against Incarnate Word, Sept. 29 against Utah Tech, and Oct. 1 against Southern Utah.
UTRGV plays four of the next five on the road, with a home match against New Mexico State on Oct. 13 sandwiched by weekend trips to Sam Houston and Lamar Oct. 6-8 and Grand Canyon and California Baptist Oct. 20-22.
UTRGV hosts Stephen F. Austin on Oct. 27 and UT Arlington on Oct. 29 before visiting Seattle U on Nov. 3, Utah Valley on Nov. 5, and Abilene Christian on Nov. 10.
UTRGV closes out WAC play at home on Nov. 12 against Tarleton.
The top eight teams advance to the WAC Tournament. The winner earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
UTRGV won the WAC Tournament in 2016, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the first time. The Vaqueros returned to the postseason last year, taking part in the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC).
“The WAC just continues to get better.” Lowery said. “New Mexico State continues to recruit well and get transfers that are on an elite level. Grand Canyon continues to get better. Utah Valley has won the WAC Tournament the last two years. All three of those schools – their size is just something we’re going to have to find a way to deal with. I think that our non-conference schedule, with teams like UTEP and Texas Tech, teams that have a lot of size, is going to prepare us well.
“The WAC schedule is different this year as we don’t play home and away – we play everyone once – so we’re going to have be really focused in on that one. I think we have a pretty good balance of competition between our home and road schedules. I really think seeding will come down to that last weekend. I think with the announcement of Utah Tech and Tarleton being postseason eligible, that last match against Tarleton’s going to be huge. We’ve been really competitive with Tarleton that last few years, and I can’t think of a better match at home to wrap up with before we go into the conference tournament.”
