Women's Volleyball 6/23/2026 3:29:00 PM

Volleyball Unveils 2026 Schedule Featuring 11 Home Matches

LEBANON, Tenn.--Cumberland volleyball has announced its 2026 schedule, featuring a nationally competitive non-conference slate, three early-season tournaments, and a challenging Mid-South Conference schedule as the Phoenix look to build on another successful campaign.

The Phoenix finished last season with a 25-14 record finishing fourth in the Mid-South Conference at 6-6. Cumberland made a trip to the Mid-South Conference semifinals and had five players honored with All-Conference accolades following the campaign.

The season begins at home inside Dallas Floyd Phoenix Arena as Cumberland hosts the 2026 Phoenix Classic on August 14-15. Cumberland will be tested out of the gate as the Phoenix open the year against four 2025 NAIA National Tournament Qualifiers. On opening day, CU will take on the University of Rio Grande and Columbia International before welcoming Eastern Oregon and Fisk to Lebanon on Saturday. Eastern Oregon enters the season after capturing both the Cascade Collegiate Conference regular season and tournament championships and earning the No. 1 overall seed in the NAIA National Championship last season.

The next weekend, Cumberland travels to Columbia, Missouri, for the Hampton Inn Volleyball Classic hosted by Columbia College. The Phoenix will take on Central Methodist, Saint Ambrose, host Columbia College, and Tabor. Columbia enters the season as the defending American Midwest Conference regular season and tournament champion.

To close out August, Cumberland will make its longest trip of the season, heading to Arizona for five matches. The Phoenix open with Arizona Christian before competing in the OUAZ Invitational against Northwest, Embry-Riddle (Ariz.), Park (Ariz.), and host Ottawa (Ariz.) for a chance to take on teams the Phoenix would typically not see.

September begins with a return trip to the Aquinas/Cornerstone Invitational in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Cumberland is slated to face Olivet Nazarene, Aquinas, Mount Vernon Nazarene, and Cornerstone. Both Aquinas and Cornerstone advanced to the NAIA National Championship a season ago, with Aquinas winning the WHAC regular season and tournament titles and Cornerstone finishing as the tournament runner-up.

Following a home matchup against Point University on September 12, the Phoenix open Mid-South Conference play with a road trip to Bethel on September 15. Conference action continues throughout the remainder of September with road matches at defending Mid-South Conference champion Cumberlands on September 23. Cumberland has home contests against Georgetown on September 25 and Lindsey Wilson on September 29. The Phoenix will host their annual Faculty Appreciation Night on the 25th against Georgetown.

October features a blend of conference and non-conference competition. Cumberland travels to Illinois for matches against Saint Francis and Judson on October 3 before returning to conference play against Freed-Hardeman on October 6 and Campbellsville on October 9. The Phoenix will also square off with Columbia College for the second time this season in Campbellsville the following day. CU will be back in Kentucky to take on Lindsey Wilson on October 16 and make a midweek trip to Nashville to face Fisk on October 20.

The final stretch of the regular season begins with a home match against Bethel on October 22 before hosting the Cumberlands on October 27. The Phoenix conclude the regular season with a road trip to Georgetown and home matches against Campbellsville and Freed-Hardeman, with Senior Night scheduled for November 6.

The Mid-South Conference Championship will once again be held November 12-14 in Bowling Green, Kentucky, with the conference's automatic berth to the NAIA National Championship on the line. The NAIA Opening Round is scheduled for November 21 at campus sites, while the NAIA National Championship returns to Sioux City, Iowa, December 2-8.

Cumberland will face nine teams that qualified for postseason national competition in 2025, including Eastern Oregon, Columbia International, Columbia College, Aquinas, Cornerstone, Cumberlands, Lindsey Wilson, Rio Grande, and Fisk, across 13 matches during the regular season.

The Phoenix will compete in six different states throughout the regular season and host 11 matches inside Dallas Floyd Phoenix Arena.

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