The Chattanooga Mocs volleyball program will host Atlanta-based Georgia State next Saturday, August 24, at Noon inside Maclellan Gymnasium for a season-opening exhibition match, head coach Travis Filar announced Thursday afternoon.
Warm-ups will begin at 11 a.m. and admission is FREE and open to the public. The exhibition match will not count toward official 2019 records and will mark a great opportunity for the teams to grow and gel together ahead of regular season play.
"As we are just finishing up pre-season camp and beginning to start class, I could not be more excited about coaching this group or more proud of how hard they have worked in the gym and off the court strengthening our team's identity and chemistry going into this fall," said Filar.
"They have come into the gym each training session, regardless of if it is just one on that day or a double, or triple-day, they have taken full advantage of every opportunity to learn and get better."
Georgia State, a member of the Sun Belt Conference, adds seven newcomers and talented depth to this year's roster after finishing 7-19, 4-12 in 2018.
Filar believes this will be a great test for the team and is excited to see the progress made during the last few weeks of training camp.
"We are really challenging their volleyball minds, asking them to be prepared to grow from the neck up more than we ever have, and they have taken lots of positive strides in adopting and embracing that growth mindset," the head coach added.
"The opportunity to have a full, live scrimmage against a solid opponent like Georgia State will be exactly what we need next Saturday. After a little more than two weeks of practice, we are thankful and ready for this first competition to work out some things in preparation for our final week of practice before heading to Mississippi State."
Stick to GoMocs.com for the release of the home match promotional schedule as well as additional team previews leading up to the start of the 2019 season.
Chattanooga (0-0) opens the 2019 campaign at the StarkVegas Classic in Starkville, Miss., against SEC-member and host, Mississippi State on August 30. Western Illinois and Mississippi Valley State, in addition to UTC and MSU, round out the tournament field. Game coverage links will be available closer to first serve on the schedule page.