Women's Volleyball | 7/13/2026 10:00:00 AM

ERIE, Pa. – Head coach Matt Darling has announced the 2026 Gannon volleyball schedule as the Golden Knights prepare for another challenging campaign against some of the top competition in the PSAC, Atlantic Region and NCAA Division II.

The 26-match slate includes 10 home matches inside the Highmark Events Center, 11 road contests and five neutral-site matches as Gannon aims for its 17th PSAC Tournament appearance, 17th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and 23rd NCAA Tournament appearance overall.

Gannon enters the 2026 season following another successful campaign that saw the Golden Knights finish 27-8 overall, advance to their ninth NCAA Elite Eight in program history and closed the year ranked No. 23 in the final AVCA Division II Top 25 Poll. Gannon is in search of its third straight NCAA Atlantic Regional crown and fifth in the last six seasons.

"This schedule should provide us with plenty of opportunities to show what we can do against the best competition in the conference, the region, and in Division II," Darling said. "Our players really wanted a schedule like this."

The Golden Knights open the season Aug. 28 at the Cedarville Invitational, where they will immediately face one of the nation's premier programs in Concordia St. Paul.
 Gannon is familiar with the Golden Bears after falling to the eventual national runner-up in last season's NCAA Division II Elite Eight, as Concordia St. Paul finished the year ranked No. 2 in the final AVCA Division II Top 25 Poll.

Later that day, the Golden Knights take on host Cedarville, which handed Gannon its only home loss during the 2025 season. Gannon concludes the tournament against Missouri-St. Louis on Aug. 29, as the Tritons enter the season after finishing No. 25 in the final AVCA Division II Top 25 Poll.

Gannon returns home the following weekend to host the Gannon Invitational during Labor Day Weekend at Highmark Events Center, marking the first time since the 2022 season the Golden Knights have hosted an invitational. The two-day tournament features Clarion, Malone, Wayne State and Eckerd, giving Gannon another strong early-season test before conference play begins.

"We're looking forward to hosting the tournament on Labor Day weekend, as this will bring some great teams to Erie," Darling said. "It will be two days filled with excellent teams, and local volleyball fans will be in for a treat."

The challenging non-conference schedule continues the following week at the MEC-PSAC Crossover Tournament, where the Golden Knights will face Wheeling, West Virginia State, West Liberty and Fairmont State before traveling to Hillsdale, Mich., to take on Hillsdale and Ashland.

PSAC play begins Sept. 17 when Gannon hosts Edinboro at Highmark Events Center. The Golden Knights' conference home schedule also features California (Pa.) and Seton Hill during Alumni Weekend on Sept. 25-26, along with Pitt-Johnstown, IUP, Clarion and Slippery Rock.

Gannon closes the regular season with road matches at Pitt-Johnstown and IUP on Nov. 6-7 before the PSAC Tournament begins Nov. 9. The NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional is scheduled to begin Nov. 19, while the NCAA Division II Volleyball Championships will be held Dec. 3-5 in Kansas City, Missouri.