With the start of the season under a month away, the Oakland University women’s volleyball team has announced its full 2024 schedule.
Last season, the Golden Grizzlies finished with an overall record of 17-14 and a conference record of 11-7. The team’s 11 conference wins are the most since the 2017 season. Additionally, OU’s trip to the postseason last year was their first since 2019.
The season unofficially starts for OU on Friday, Aug. 23, with the Black & Gold Scrimmage at the OU Credit Union O’Rena. The next day, on Aug. 24, the Golden Grizzlies will face the Bowling Green Falcons on the road.
Following the tilt against the Falcons, the Golden Grizzlies will travel to Buffalo, N.Y., to participate in the Buffalo Invite hosted by the University of Buffalo.
The Buffalo Invite begins Friday, Aug. 30, with the Golden Grizzlies facing the Buffalo Bulls and continues the next day, Aug. 31, against Army. OU will close the Buffalo Invite on Sep. 1, facing Hampton University.
After the Buffalo Invite, OU will trek to Ypsilanti, MI, for the EMU Tournament. The tournament kicks off with two games against the George Washington Revolutionaries and the Marshall Thundering Herd on Friday, Sep. 6.
The Golden Grizzlies will finish the tournament on Sep. 7, when they face the Eastern Michigan Eagles. Remarkably, OU has defeated the Eagles in their last four meetings.
After two tournaments, OU will take a break from tournament play and host Sacramento State on Friday, Sep. 13, and Saint Francis University on Sep. 14.
Next, the Golden Grizzlies will take a brief excursion to Ann Arbor, MI, to face the University of Michigan Wolverines. This is the first meeting between the Golden Grizzlies and the Wolverines since 2019 and the first Power Five opponent for OU since 2022, when OU played Michigan State University.
The Golden Grizzlies will then voyage to Athens, Ohio, for the Ohio Invitational, rounding out the non-conference schedule. The event starts for OU on Friday, Sep. 20, with a matchup against Liberty University and Eastern Kentucky University.
On Saturday, Sep. 21, the Golden Grizzlies will face the Ohio University Bobcats, marking the end of the Ohio Invitational and the start of conference play in the Horizon League.
Below is a complete list of the Horizon League games for the Golden Grizzlies:
Sep. 27 vs. Milwaukee
Sep. 28 vs. Milwaukee
Oct. 1 at Cleveland State
Oct. 4 vs. Robert Morris
Oct. 5 vs. Robert Morris
Oct. 11 at Purdue Fort Wayne
Oct. 12 at Purdue Fort Wayne
Oct. 18 at Green Bay
Oct. 19 at Green Bay
Oct. 25 vs. IU Indy (Formerly known as IUPUI)
Oct. 26 vs. IU Indy
Oct. 29 vs. Cleveland State
Nov. 1 at Youngstown State
Nov. 2 at Youngstown State
Nov. 8 at Northern Kentucky
Nov. 9 at Northern Kentucky
Nov. 15 vs Wright State
Nov. 16 vs Wright State
A conference matchup to look out for includes the regular season finale against the Wright State Raiders, the back-to-back defending Horizon League champions. Notably, last season, OU snapped a ten-game losing streak against the Raiders that dated back to 2018.
By the season’s end, the top six teams in the Horizon League, which is determined by conference record, will advance to the Horizon League playoffs.
If the playoff schedule follows the pattern of previous years, the playoffs will start on Friday, Nov. 22, and conclude on Sunday, Nov. 24. The team atop the Horizon League standings will host the playoffs.