GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University men's volleyball team will play 24 regular season contests, including six contests against other members of the Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (IVA), with the release of TU's 2026 schedule.
Second-year head coach Alberto Chiaparini will have a roster of 18 in 2026. Chiaparini retains 12 from last year's record-breaking squad, adding six freshmen to the fold. His inaugural team went 15-13 (3-3 IVA), setting a program record for single-season wins and earning the No. 3 seed in the IVA Tournament. Tusculum established team season records in hitting percentage (.250), digs (921), digs per set (8.77), total blocks (202), blocks per set (1.92) and points per set (14.5).
Out of the 24 matches, 11 will take place in Pioneer Arena. The Pioneers will face a combination of 16 across the season.
Tusculum travels to Queens University of Charlotte for the season opener on January 10. The Royals have won all nine of the previous meetings over the Pioneers, including the lone contest last season. Queens went 10-20 overall and 2-14 in the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA), ending the year on an 11-match losing streak. The Royals will have a new coach for the first time in program history heading into 2026.
The Pioneers' home opener is scheduled for January 15 against Emmanuel. The Lions went 4-23 and 2-12 in Conference Carolinas action last season. The series history is tied at 3-3, with the last meetings occurring in 2024.
The homestand continues with a quick turnaround to face Erskine on January 16. The Flying Fleet finished 9-16 (5-9 CC) to claim the fifth seed in the league tournament. Tusculum swept Erskine twice last season to close the deficit to 6-3 in all-time meetings.
Tusculum's home stint comes to a close against North Greenville on January 24. In 2025, the Pioneers tallied their first win versus the Trailblazers in the series history, dating back to TU's inaugural season. NGU finished 12-13 (6-7 CC) after falling in the league's semifinal round.
Thomas More is the Pioneers' destination to close out January on the 30th. The Saints went 8-15 (0-8 IVA) in 2025, advancing to the IVA quarterfinals in its last season in the independent league. Tusculum leads the all-time series 3-1 over TMU after a pair of wins a year ago. The Saints will be under new leadership for a second-straight season.
King is Tusculum's stop on February 3. The Tornado went 4-23 (4-10 CC) in 2025, bowing out in the conference quarterfinals. The Pioneers now trail King 5-4 in the series history, closing the gap with four-straight victories.
Lees-McRae comes to Greeneville on February 6 as one of two home matches during the month. The Bobcats struggled once again last season, finishing 3-23 (2-12 CC). Tusculum has won six-straight in the series, extending the advantage to 6-1. The lone TU loss was back in the first meeting between the programs in 2020. The Pioneers will see a familiar face on the LMC roster, Thiago Da Silva (2023-24).
Tusculum hits the road for back-to-back matches in North Carolina, starting with Belmont Abbey on February 7. The Crusaders had a storied season, finishing 17-9 (12-2 CC), winning the conference tournament and the automatic bid to the NCAAs for a second-straight year. Belmont Abbey fell in the quarterfinal round to national runner-up UCLA. TU also notched its first win over the Crusaders in series history and now trail 4-1.
After nearly a week off, the Pioneers trek to Catawba on the 13th. The Catawba Indians finished 13-12 (1-2 IVA) in their inaugural season, wrapping up in the IVA quarterfinals. Tusculum and Catawba split their meetings, with the road team coming away victorious in each instance. Catawba has a Tusculum connection in transfer Cameron Reeder (2024).
The Pioneers close out February at Ball State on the 26th. This will mark the fifth-straight trip to Muncie, Indiana as the Cardinals have won all six previous matchups. Ball State finished 17-13 (9-7 MIVA), falling in the league quarterfinals as the No. 5 seed.
Lincoln Memorial makes the short trip to Greeneville on March 3. The Railsplitters are coming off of a 24-1 campaign and seventh-straight IVA championship that saw them nationally-ranked for most of the season. LMU has won all 12 of the previous contests over the Pioneers but will be under new leadership as the previous coach is now an assistant at Ball State.
For the first time in program history, Tusculum will compete against Kentucky State. The Pioneers are set to host the Thorobreds on March 10. Officially, KSU went 0-7 in the spring.
Another first-time opponent comes at a tri-match on March 14, hosted by Randolph-Macon.
The Pioneers will face off against the Randolph WildCats, who are in their second season of Division III competition. Randolph went 12-15 overall and 4-8 in Old Dominion Athletic Conference action.
RMC and Tusculum met once before back in 2022, also via a tri-match in Ashland, Virginia, with the Yellow Jackets taking a four-set win. Randolph-Macon finished 22-10 (12-0) in their inaugural ODAC season, winning the postseason title and a bid to the NCAA tournament.
Charleston ends back-to-back home dates for TU on March 21. The Golden Eagles went 12-17 overall and 5-7 in the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA), falling in the league quarterfinals. The Pioneers are now 1-4 against UC after picking up a five-set win this spring.
Newberry has announced the addition of men's volleyball to its sport offerings, with 2026 being the first season of competition. Tusculum will travel to South Carolina for the contest on March 24.
The Pioneers will play the second half of eight home-and-home series throughout the season: Thomas More (Feb. 15), North Greenville (Feb. 20), Lees-McRae (Mar. 6), Erskine (Mar. 7), Catawba (Mar. 20), King (Apr. 3), Newberry (Apr. 7), and Lincoln Memorial (Apr. 11).
The 2026 season will be capped off by the IVA Tournament, which runs from April 17-18, and is tentatively being hosted by Barry University in Miami Shores, Florida.
The National Collegiate Men's Volleyball semifinal and final rounds will take place from May 9-11 at the Pauley Pavilion on the campus of UCLA. The participating teams will be selected on April 26.
