Wisconsin volleyball: a breakdown of UW’s 2022 non-conference schedule

The defending national champion Wisconsin Badgers volleyball team has officially announced their non-conference schedule for this upcoming fall. The schedule begins on August 26 and consists of eight matches running through September 18. The women will look to start their season strong and avoid that awful, dreaded championship hangover.

8/26 at TCU

Kelly Sheffield’s team opens the season in Texas for the first of two round-robin type tournaments they will participate in over the course of their non-conference schedule. The Badgers will take on TCU and Baylor in Fort Worth before heading to Kentucky for two matches in September.

8/27 vs. Baylor (Neutral site - Fort Worth, Texas)

The Badgers will be tested early and often in 2022. Similar to last season, the Badgers second match of the year comes against the Baylor Bears who finished ranked No. 10 in the final AVCA poll last season. Last year, the Badgers took care of business in Madison and will look to do the same on the road.

9/2 vs. Marquette

First game back in the Field House. You know what that means...TIME TO RAISE A DAMN BANNER!

9/4 vs. High Point

No disrespect to High Point, but this should be a quick one in Madison.

9/9 and 9/10 at Kentucky, vs. Campbell

As previously mentioned, this is the second mini-tournament the Badgers will participate in. Last season, Kentucky traveled to the Field House and were defeated by the eventual National Champions. They’ll be looking to avenge that loss on their home floor. Badger fans hoping to catch this matchup between (most likely) two ranked opponents should be hoping Kentucky is scheduled for 9/9 and Campbell for 9/10. Badger football hosts Washington State on Sept. 10.

9/16 vs. Florida

Another big test for the Badgers. Florida ended the 2021 season ranked as the No. 15 team in the AVCA poll.

9/18 vs. Rhode Island

Former Badger volunteer assistant coach Angel Agu brings Rhode Island to the Field House in her second year at the helm of the Rams.

As a whole, the non-conference scheduled is very balanced featuring a number of early season challenges (Baylor, Kentucky, Florida) that will force the new-look Badgers to learn how to play and handle adversity together really quickly. Ultimately, it will do nothing but serve them well come time for the conference season.