Head coach Travis Hudson on Wednesday announced Western Kentucky volleyball’s 2024 schedule ahead of his historic 30th season leading the program.

The Hilltoppers are fresh off a 30-win season, a No. 22 final national ranking, another Conference USA championship and a victory in the NCAA Tournament. WKU is one of just 12 programs to have won an NCAA Tournament match and finished in the final top-25 poll in each of the last five seasons.

“This is an incredibly challenging slate for our 2024 team,” Hudson said in a news release. “We have lost an All-American from our roster in each of the last two seasons and have a lot of work to do to be able to compete at the level we have recently. Our fans will need to show patience as we navigate some significant challenges early on.”

The schedule features 17 home matches at E.A. Diddle Arena, including matches against Tennessee, Dayton, Marquette and Illinois. Five 2024 opponents went to the NCAA Tournament last season, including four who come to Bowling Green.

“This year’s 17-match home slate will be one our fans won’t want to miss,” Hudson said. “Four NCAA Tournament teams from 2023 come to Diddle Arena, including Tennessee, who ended our season last year. The CUSA portion features several challenging matchups, too, such as our rival MTSU at home, as well as New Mexico State, who we beat in the championship last season and will be the potential CUSA preseason favorites this fall.”

The 2024 season begins in Lexington on Aug. 30 against Morehead State. The Tops will also take on Northern Kentucky and the host Wildcats on Aug. 31. Last season, UK finished ranked No. 10 in the country with a trip to the Sweet 16.

The following weekend, WKU heads to East Lansing, Michigan, for the Kathy DeBoer Invitational at Michigan State. In addition to the host Spartans (Sept. 6), the Hilltoppers will take on Marist (Sept. 6) and Loyola-Chicago (Sept. 7) that weekend.

WKU’s home opener is on Sept. 10 against Tennessee, the team that ended the Hilltoppers’ 2023 season in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers, making their second-ever trip to Bowling Green, finished last season ranked No. 9 with a loss to eventual national champion Texas in the Sweet 16.

The Hilltoppers stay home for the Hyatt Place Invitational that weekend, playing host to three high-powered programs in Dayton, Illinois and Marquette. WKU plays Marquette on Sept. 13 at 11 a.m., a team it defeated to open the 2023 season in Dayton, Ohio. The Flyers and Hilltoppers match up that evening at 7 p.m. before WKU and Illinois square off at 3 p.m. the following day. Dayton finished the 2023 season ranked No. 20, while Marquette was listed as receiving the second-most votes outside the top 25.

The following weekend, WKU remains home for the annual Alyssa Cavanaugh Classic. The Hilltoppers will host Arkansas State, Eastern Illinois and Austin Peay on Sept. 20-21. That weekend also serves as WKU’s Parent & Family Weekend on campus.

The Hilltoppers begin a challenging 18-game CUSA schedule after the Alyssa Cavanaugh Classic. In total, WKU hosts five conference opponents while traveling to four.

WKU’s five home opponents are: Kennesaw State (Oct. 4-5), Middle Tennessee (Oct. 8-9), Louisiana Tech (Oct. 18-19), New Mexico State (Nov. 1-2) and Liberty (Nov. 14-15). The Hilltoppers will celebrate Senior Night on Nov. 15 at 6 p.m.

On the road, WKU travels to Jacksonville State (Sept. 27-28), FIU (Oct. 12-13), UTEP (Oct. 25-26) and Sam Houston State (Nov. 8-9).

WKU has won 17 of a possible 20 CUSA championships since entering the league in 2014 and has won 74 consecutive CUSA regular-season matches.