Johnson & Wales

 Volleyball is the most difficult of all schedules to create because of several factors. 

There are tri-matches but we don’t have a number of teams (9, 12, 15) to make it a tri-match for all teams each week. We have teams adding to the league such as Colby Sawyer and Regis, that are new to the rotation, and of course the unexpected exit of Mount Ida this past spring caused disruption to conference schedules. 

The priorities for the schedule  in rank order are 

 1. Trying to get all teams five home contests during the conference schedule

2.  Reducing missed class time during the week 

3. Saving money on transportation costs by sharing buses with other teams

4.  Honoring the request for teams for special dates and the opportunity to play in non-conference tournaments 

 Because the volleyball schedule is not as straightforward as other sports that simply rotate the home and away each year due to tri-matches in volleyball there are a few odd looking quirks. For example two teams may be scheduled to play a single match but not a tri-match in order to provide as many teams as possible (12 of 13 in 2019) with five home games. Additionally occasionally a team returns to a site that they played at last season for the same reasons (only once in 2019). The conference office keeps tracks of there outliers and in the long run all teams home and away games will balance out.

Thank you for your understanding of this complex schedule. 

Joe Walsh

GNAC Commissioner and Scheduler