Louisville is ready to serve up history, one game at a time.
The 2024 NCAA College Volleyball season is upon us, and teams are ready to make a splash.
Louisville is gearing up for the American Volleyball Coaches Association First Serve Showcase on August 27 at the KFC Yum! Center. The showcase will feature four powerhouse teams that are expected to make a deep run this season: Kentucky vs Nebraska at 7 p.m. followed by Louisville vs. Wisconsin. Because the event will feature four powerhouse teams that are expected to make deep runs, there will definitely be some potential history made as far as attendance.
All four teams were very successful last season, and they all made deep runs in the NCAA tournament. Louisville finished the regular season with a 27-5 record, making it to the Elite 8. Kentucky finished with a 21-8 record, making it to the Regional Semifinal. Wisconsin finished with a 30-4 record, making it to the National Semifinal. Nebraska finished with a 33-2 record, making it all the way to the National Championship and falling just short of the title.
Volleyball has been on the rise for the past several years all over the country. In addition to this, the sport has been getting more TV attention. The KFC Yum! Center has always been known to produce high attendance numbers for basketball, but volleyball has been climbing up there recently. Last season, on September 13, Louisville volleyball set a program attendance record of 12,760 when they played against Kentucky. This says a lot about the growth of the overall game of volleyball all over the country, but specifically in the state of Louisville.
“It’s just an amazing time for volleyball in our country right now and even more for the city of Louisville,” Dani Busboom Kelly, Louisville head coach, said in a press conference with the AVCA. “What we can do as a city to help grow our sport, and you know, promote all the amazing things that are happening in the sport of volleyball.”
With volleyball growing tremendously, there will be lots of TV attention on ESPN and other channels. This season, there will be 2,600+ matches on ESPN platforms, and thousands of live games on ESPN+. Louisville will have 10 games televised, including ESPN, ESPN2, ACC Network, Big Ten Network, and ABC. To make things even better, on Sept. 22, Louisville and Nebraska will face off against each other on ABC, making it the first regular season volleyball game on the channel. This says a lot about the growth of the sport and the fact that there are lots of people out there that care about it.
This season will be very full circle not just because of the first game being at the KFC Yum! Center, but the National Semifinal and Championship this December will be at the same place, and on ABC. This is huge for the city of Louisville because people from all over the country will be coming to witness some amazing volleyball and explore the vibrant Louisville culture. It wouldn’t be a surprise if a new attendance record gets established.
This is an exciting time for college volleyball and fans all over the country. Follow along across all ESPN platforms to witness some amazing games.
