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Beach Volleyball

Sandy Panthers Announce Spring 2023 Schedule

ATLANTA— With just one month remaining until the start of the season, head coach Beth Van Fleet has announced the spring 2023 Georgia State beach volleyball schedule. The Sandy Panthers prepare to return to the sand coming off an electric 2022 campaign that saw the team end the season AVCA ranked No. 7 in the country after advancing to the round of six at the NCAA Championship.

2023 marks new beginnings for the Sandy Panthers as the Sun Belt Conference announced the addition of beach volleyball to its list of sponsored sports for the spring season. Joining GSU in the new eight-team league will be SBC institutions Coastal Carolina, ULM and Southern Miss, as well as affiliate members College of Charleston, Mercer, Stephen F. Austin and UNCW.

GSU will open tournament play in Florida in back-to-back weekends beginning with the Jacksonville Invitational on Feb. 24-25. The tournament will see the Sandy Panthers face host Jacksonville, Tampa, Palm Beach Atlantic and fellow Sun Belt Conference newcomer College of Charleston in its first SBC match.

The following weekend GSU travels for the Tampa Invitational in a tournament that will feature a slate of matchups against four teams that finished ranked Top 15 in the AVCA Collegiate Beach Volleyball Final Poll a season ago, including No. 6 TCU, No. 9 Grand Canyon, No. 14 Stetson and No. 20 Florida Gulf Coast. The tournament in Tampa, Fla. will take place on March 3-4 and also includes a matchup with host Tampa.
 
GSU returns home for its annual Day of Duals at the GSU Beach Volleyball Complex on Wednesday, March 8 as the team plays host to new SBC foes Coastal Carolina and Mercer. GSU will also battle Florida State in its first of two matchups slated against the Seminoles in 2023.

The Sandy Panthers will then travel to Gulf Shores, Ala. on Friday, March 17 for the fifth annual March to May. One of the nation's premier beach volleyball tournaments, the competition consistently showcases many of the most talented and highly touted teams across the country.

Hosted by UAB at Gulf Beach Place, the weekend includes a slate of five matches for GSU facing teams that ended the 2022 season ranked AVCA Top 20 in the nation. The tournament will see GSU in a rematch with AVCA second-ranked Florida State and scheduled matches against No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 LMU, No. 5 LSU and No. 19 South Carolina. 

GSU will also face host UAB and Tulane for the tournament spanning three days, March 17-19.

Nearing the end of March, GSU will travel to Columbia, S.C. for the Gamecock Grand Slam on March 24-25. The weekend features second meetings with Tampa and host South Carolina, as well as matches facing Arizona State and Houston Baptist.

April brings a trip out west for the Sandy Panthers as the team travels for 'East Meets West' hosted by UCLA in Manhattan Beach, Calif.

Following a rematch with LMU followed by an outing facing Hawaii on March 31, GSU prepares to face defending national champions and AVCA top-ranked USC as well as host No. 3 UCLA on April 1. The Sandy Panthers matched up against both UCLA and LMU at the NCAA Championship in Gulf Shores last season to close the historic 2022 tournament run.

Returning to Atlanta a week later, GSU will host its second home tournament of the season as the team puts on its annual GSU Diggin' Duals on April 7-8 at the GSU Sand Volleyball Complex. The weekend in Atlanta will include a third meeting with South Carolina, repeat matches against both UAB and Stetson and a matchup against UT Martin.

The Sandy Panthers' regular season will conclude in Honolulu, Hawaii as the team goes wheels-up for the Hawaii Invitational on April 15-16. The trip includes back-to-back matches facing both host Hawaii and Arizona before the team prepares for post-season competition.

The inaugural Sun Belt Beach Volleyball Championship will be held at John Hunt Sand Volleyball Complex in Huntsville, Ala. The tournament is set for April 27-29 with the winner set to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship. 

The 2023 NCAA National Collegiate Beach Volleyball Championship will take place in Gulf Shores, Ala. on May 5-7. GSU looks to make a return trip to the 16-team single-elimination event following the landmark 2022 season that saw the team finish sixth nationally.

For the latest news and updates on the Sandy Panthers' 2023 campaign, follow Georgia State Beach Volleyball on Twitter and Instagram (@GSUBeachVb) as the team enters the 2023 campaign.








 
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