Volleyball and women’s soccer announced their game schedules this week, becoming the first two Colonials teams to release a full schedule for the upcoming year.

Both squads begin their seasons in roughly a month and will have three contests under their belt before academic classes begin at GW.

Rosters for the remainder of the fall teams are expected to come out in the coming weeks.

Volleyball

The Colonials will host two tournaments at the Smith Center for the first time since 2014 – the GW Invitational (Sept. 1-2) and the GW Tournament (Sept. 15-16) – increasing volleyball’s home non-conference matchups from four to seven since last year.

The team, under first-year head coach Sarah Bernson, will play the program’s first-ever games against seven teams including Wofford, Western Michigan, LIU Brooklyn, Hofstra, South Dakota State, North Dakota State and Holy Cross.

Of the first 11 games of the season, volleyball has a combined 3-8 career record against their opponents. For the remainder of the non-conference games, the team has an easier and more familiar schedule. Volleyball’s combined all-time record against Delaware, UMBC, Maryland Eastern Shore, Howard and American – its final five out-of-conference games – is 83-19.

The game at American on Oct. 11 will be one to look out for as Bernson will coach against the crosstown rival after serving as an assistant for the Eagles for the previous five seasons.

Volleyball’s Atlantic 10 schedule is lopsided with seven of its first nine conference games on the road and each of the last five games at home. Most years the Colonials have had long stretches at home or on the road, but they have not finished with five consecutive games at home in at least 15 years.

Volleyball 2017 Schedule

UT Invitational – Knoxville, Tenn.
Aug. 25 vs. Wofford
Aug. 26 vs. Western Michigan
Aug. 26 vs. Tennessee

GW Invitational – Washington, D.C.
Sept. 1 vs. Indiana
Sept. 2 vs. LIU Brooklyn
Sept. 2 vs. Hofstra

UND Classic – Grand Forks, N.D.
Sept. 9 vs. North Dakota
Sept. 9 vs. Appalachian State
Sept. 10 vs. South Dakota State
Sept. 10 vs. North Dakota State

GW Tornament – Washington, D.C.
Sept. 15 vs. Holy Cross
Sept. 15 vs. Delaware
Sept. 16 vs. UMBC

Sept. 19 vs. Maryland Eastern Shore
Sept. 22 at La Salle*
Sept. 24 at Duquesne*
Sept. 29 at Rhode Island*
Oct. 1 at Fordham*
Oct. 3 at Howard
Oct. 6 at George Mason*
Oct. 11 at American
Oct. 13 vs. VCU*
Oct. 14 vs. Davidson*
Oct. 20 at Saint Louis*
Oct. 22 at Dayton*
Oct. 27 vs. Duquesne*
Oct. 28 vs. La Salle*
Nov. 3 vs. George Mason*
Nov. 10 vs. Dayton*
Nov. 11 vs. Saint Louis*

Atlantic 10 games = *

Women’s soccer

Coming off an 11-7-3 season that included a 6-0 start and a semifinal exit to the conference tournament, women’s soccer looks to place together its fifth straight winning season and its fifth consecutive trip to the A-10 Championships.

One of the team’s early challenges will be on the road at Georgetown. The Colonials are only 1-12-0 against the Hoyas in program history, including a 1–0 loss last season when Georgetown was ranked No. 18 in the country.

Women’s soccer will also travel only a short distance to American early in the season along with non-conference home games against Liberty, LSU, Towson and Saint Francis.

Davidson is the only team on the conference schedule that women’s soccer has not seen since 2014. Nearly three years ago the Colonials were 1-0 victors over the Wildcats.

Fifteen of the 24 goals scored by women’s soccer last season were finished by graduating seniors that are not members of the 2017 roster. The loss of those seniors and especially 2017 graduate MacKenzie Cowley, who started all 21 games and tallied 11 goals last year, may hinder the Colonials.

Just two years ago when GW finished undefeated (10-0-0) in A-10 play, it was the first time since 2002 that the team had won more than five conference games in a season. Although last season did not match that success, the juniors and senior on the team may have a difficult time recreating their early career conquests.

Women’s Soccer 2017 Schedule

Aug. 18 at Delaware
Aug. 20 at Georgetown
Aug. 24 vs. Liberty
Aug. 31 vs. LSU
Sept. 3 at American
Sept. 7 vs. Towson
Sept. 10 vs. Saint Francis (PA)
Sept. 14 at Delaware State
Sept. 17 at James Madison
Sept. 21 at George Mason*
Sept. 24 at Rhode Island*
Sept. 28 vs. Fordham*
Oct. 1 vs. St. Bonaventure*
Oct. 5 at Richmond*
Oct. 8 vs. Saint Louis*
Oct. 12 vs. Saint Joseph’s*
Oct. 15 at Dayton*
Oct. 19 at Davidson*
Oct. 22 vs. Duquesne*

Atlantic 10 games = *