2009 Schedule

The Women’s Volleyball 2009 schedule featured 15 home matches and 32 matches overall, eight of which were televised. The schedule generated alot of criticism, quite unfairly, as Gordon Brunskill of the Centre Daily Times points out in this article. Here’s the 2009 Schedule:

DateOpponentLocationTimeMediaNotes/Stats
08/28/09Miami (Oh) St. Louis, MO5:00 p.m. CT GameTrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
08/29/09 AlabamaSt. Louis, MO1:00 p.m. CT GameTrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
08/29/09 Saint Louis St. Louis, MO7:00 p.m. CT GameTrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
09/04/09 BuffaloRec Hall7:00 p.m. ET GameTrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
09/05/09 Robert Morris Rec Hall10:00 a.m. ETGameTrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
09/05/09PittsburghRec Hall7:00 p.m. ET GameTrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
09/11/09 Loyola (Md) Durham, NC5:00 p.m. ET W 3-0 Notes
Stats
09/12/09 CharlestonDurham, NC12:00 p.m. ETW 3-0 Notes
Stats

09/12/09 DukeDurham, NC12:00 p.m. ET W 3-0 Notes
Stats

09/18/09TemplePhiladelphia, PA7:00 p.m. ET W 3-0 Notes
Stats
09/19/09 Saint Francis (PA) Rec Hall10:00 a.m. ETGameTrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
09/19/09 Temple Rec Hall7:30 p.m. ETBTN Live Stream; GameTrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
09/25/09 Northwestern Evanston, IL7:00 p.m. CTGameTracker

W 3-0 Notes
Stats
09/26/09 IllinoisChampaign, IL7:00 p.m. CTBTN LIVE; GameTrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
10/02/09 IowaRec Hall7:00 p.m. ETBTN Live Stream; GameTrackerW 3-1 Notes;
Stats
10/03/09 WisconsinRec Hall7:00 p.m. ETBTN Live Stream; GameTrackerW 3-0 Notes;
Stats
10/07/09 Ohio State Columbus, OH7:00 p.m. ETBTN LIVE; 
Live StatsW 3-1 Notes;
Stats
10/11/09 MinnesotaMinneapolis, MN1:00 p.m. CTBTN LIVE
W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
10/16/09 MichiganAnn Arbor, MI7:00 p.m. ETGame Tracker
ESPN2 10-18-09
W 3-2 Notes;
Stats
10/17/09 Michigan StateEast Lansing, MI6:30 p.m. ETGame Tracker
W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
10/23/09 IndianaRec Hall8:00 p.m. ETESPNU LIVE; Game TrackerW 3-0 Notes;
Stats
10/24/09 Purdue Rec Hall7:00 p.m. ETBTN 10-25-09; Game Tracker
W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
10/28/09 Ohio State Rec Hall7:00 p.m. ETBTN LIVE; Game Tracker W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
10/30/09 MinnesotaRec Hall7:00 p.m. ETBTN 11-01-09; Game Tracker W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
11/06/09 WisconsinMadison, WI7:00 p.m. CTGame Tracker W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
11/07/09 Iowa Iowa City, IA7:00 p.m. CTGame Tracker W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
11/13/09 IllinoisRec Hall7:00 p.m. ETBTN Live Stream; Game Tracker W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
11/14/09 NorthwesternRec Hall7:00 p.m. ETBTN Live Stream; Game Tracker W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
11/20/09 Purdue West Lafayette, IN7:00 p.m. ETBTN Live Stream; Game Tracker W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
11/21/09 Indiana Bloomington, IN7:00 p.m. ETGame Tracker W 3-0 Notes;
Stats
11/27/09 Michigan State Rec Hall7:00 p.m. ETBTN Live Stream; Game Tracker W 3-0 Notes
Stats
11/28/09 MichiganRec Hall7:00 p.m. ETBTN Live Stream; Game Tracker

W 3-0 Notes
Stats
12/04/09 Binghamton (NCAA 1st Rnd) Rec Hall7:30 p.m. ETGame Tracker W 3-0 Notes
Stats
12/05/09 Penn (NCAA 2nd Rnd)Rec Hall7:30 p.m. ETGame TrackerW 3-0 Notes
Stats
12/11/09 NCAA Reg. SemisGainesville, FL6:00 p.m. ETtba
12/12/09 NCAA Reg. FinalGainesville, FL
12/17/09 NCAA SemifinalsTampa, FL
12/19/09 NCAA FinalTampa, FL

The critics would have us believe that Penn State dodged tough opponents this season. That simply isn’t true. For one thing, there are a number of tough opponents on the 2009 schedule (cue Russ Rose pointing out that every opponent is tough). Rich Kern’s Preseason Poll ranks Minnesota #8, Illinois #10, Michigan #16, St. Louis #17, Purdue #21, Wisconsin #34, Duke #36 (and picked #1 in the ACC Preseason Poll), and Michigan State #39. Granted, the PacTen has higher-rated teams, and more of them, but that’s hardly the fault of Penn State or Russ Rose.

As to the preseason schedule, you can’t schedule a team unless it agrees to play you. Russ Rose told Gordon Brunskill that he “tried very hard to get a number of people to play, talked to a number of teams in the top 10, and there were some people that didn’t want to play us home or away. . . . And there were some that didn’t want to come and play us. Scheduling is not as easy as maybe people think it is.”

Rose believed Nebraska had agreed to play Penn State at University Park this season — a match that would have drawn enormous attention, given Penn State’s hard fought 3-2 victory over the Huskers in last year’s National Semi-Final match in Omaha, Nebraska. That match was a classic: largest crowd in NCAA Women’s Volleyball history, the only two sets Penn State lost all season. A natural, plus it would have been fair: Penn State has played Nebraska 12 times in Lincoln (plus last year’s “neutral” match in Omaha). Nebraska has played Penn State in University Park dozens of times once. For some reason, Nebraska chose not to come.

It must be particularly galling to Rose to be criticized for participating in Saint Louis University’s Active Ankle Challenge in St. Louis, MO (against #17 St. Louis, Miami (OH), and Alabama) and at the Duke Invitational (versus Loyola, Md., College of Charleston, and ACC pre-season favorite Duke). Penn State had long-standing commitments to these events in return for visits to Penn State in recent seasons. The Durham trip has the added benefit that it is Megan Hodge’s hometown and close to Raleigh, Katie Kabbes’ hometown.

We wish Stanford, Texas, Nebraska, Florida, Washington, etc., etc., etc. all had visited Univerity Park in 2009. With the Nebraska joining the Big10, at least Nebraska will in the future.

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