ATLANTA – Georgia State beach volleyball head coach Beth Van Fleet announced the 2021 schedule Monday morning. Coming off an 11-3 record last year, the Sandy Panthers have nine scheduled competitions ahead of the CCSA Championships. The regular season slate is highlighted by two events at home.
"Our 2021 schedule is challenging and will create opportunities for us to adapt, overcome, and compete," said Van Fleet. "We are especially excited about our home tournaments and cannot wait to defend our home courts."
The Panthers are beginning the campaign ranked No. 18 in the preseason AVCA poll. GSU will have the opportunity to make an early statement as Van Fleet's squad will face No. 8 Loyola Marymount and No. 6 Cal Poly on Feb. 27 in the first day of competition. Georgia State will round out the opening weekend with duals against Tampa and Southern Miss, a CCSA foe, the following day.
Next, the team will head to Baton Rouge, La., to battle four opponents on March 6-7. Georgia State will face three ranked CCSA rivals in No. 12 FAU, No. 3 FSU, and No. 1 LSU. In addition, the squad will battle Houston Baptist University.
The first home event of the year for Van Fleet's squad will be the annual Day of Duals date on March 10 at the GSU Beach Complex. The Panthers will host Coastal Carolina, Chattanooga, and Mercer during the midweek event. Last season GSU swept all three of their home duals, including a win over No. 15 TCU.
State will then head to Alabama on March 13-14 for a weekend filled with conference action. During the first day of the event, the Panthers will compete in a rematch against LSU before facing host UAB. The following day GSU will take on No. 15 TCU and Tulane each for the first time this season.
Georgia State will then return to the Pelican State on March 19-20 to compete at Tulane. The Panthers will be joined by Texas A&M Corpus Christi, Central Arkansas, and Hawaii.
Next, GSU will head to the University of South Carolina on March 27-28. In the first day of competition, the Panthers will prepare for two CCSA rematches against FSU and TCU. GSU will wrap-up the weekend against No. 11 Stetson and CCSA rival No. 14 South Carolina.
The following weekend Georgia State will return to the Palmetto State for a trio of meetings on April 3 and 4. The Panthers will open the weekend against Tusculum before facing Stetson one final time. The next day GSU will take on host and fellow CCSA member, College of Charleston.
The Panthers will host familiar opponents in South Carolina, Southern Miss, and UAB on April 9 and 10 in the two day Diggin' Duals competition. A week later Georgia State will head to Jacksonville, Fla. to wrap-up regular season actionwith contests against FGCU and host UNF.
The three-day CCSA Championship event will be held April 23-25 in Huntsville, Ala.
"This is such a unique year for collegiate teams as we focus on gratitude and prepare to play opponents and strategize to avoid COVID as best we can. Beach volleyball athletes are resilient humans and we will all adjust and continue to enjoy competing," said Van Fleet.
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