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Rice University Athletics
Rice Volleyball Announces 2026 Schedule
5/8/2026 4:06:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
HOUSTON – Rice volleyball head coach Genny Volpe announced the Owls' 2026 schedule on Friday.
Continuing its trend of challenging non-conference schedules, Rice will face seven teams that finished in the top 25 of the 2025 RPI rankings, including reigning national champion Texas A&M. The schedule also features nine NCAA Tournament teams and three conference tournament champions from last season. Rice will also host the 2026 American Conference Championship at Tudor Fieldhouse from Nov. 19-22.
Rice will open preseason play with a pair of road scrimmages, beginning at Texas on Aug. 14 in Austin. The Longhorns finished the 2025 season ranked No. 2 in the RPI. The Owls will then travel across town to face Houston on Aug. 21.
The regular season begins Aug. 28-30 at the South Alabama Tournament in Mobile, Alabama, where Rice will face host South Alabama, Georgia State and Mississippi State. Rice returns home for its first regular-season match at Tudor Fieldhouse on Sept. 2 against Tarleton State at 6 p.m.
The Owls will host two home tournaments during the non-conference slate. Rice Invitational I, scheduled for Sept. 4-6, will feature McNeese State and Illinois. The following weekend, Rice welcomes Louisville, Creighton and UNI to Tudor Fieldhouse for Rice Invitational II.
The tournament opens Sept. 11 with two matches, highlighted by Rice facing Louisville at 6 p.m. Rice will then take on UNI at 4 p.m. on Sept. 12 before closing the weekend against Creighton at 2:30 p.m. on Sept. 13. All four programs reached the NCAA Tournament last season, with Creighton advancing to the Elite Eight.
Rice closes non-conference play with a road swing through Fort Worth, facing SMU on Sept. 17 and TCU on Sept. 18. The Owls wrap up the regular-season non-conference schedule Sept. 22 against reigning national champion Texas A&M in College Station.
Conference play opens at home as Rice hosts ECU on Sept. 25 and UAB on Sept. 27. The Owls begin October on the road with matches at South Florida on Oct. 2 and FAU on Oct. 4 before returning home to host Wichita State on Oct. 9 and Memphis on Oct. 11.
Rice heads back on the road the following week to face Tulsa on Oct. 16 and Wichita State on Oct. 18 before traveling to Denton for a matchup against North Texas on Oct. 23.
The Owls return to Tudor Fieldhouse for a three-match homestand, beginning with Tulsa on Oct. 25 before closing the month against Tulane on Oct. 28 and South Florida on Oct. 30.
Rice opens the final month of the regular season with road matches at UTSA on Nov. 6 and Temple on Nov. 8. The Owls will host Charlotte on Nov. 13 in their final home regular-season match before closing the regular season at Tulane on Nov. 15.
After winning the 2025 American Conference regular-season title, Rice will host the 2026 American Conference Championship from Nov. 19-22 at Tudor Fieldhouse. It marks the first conference tournament hosted by the Owls since the 2019 Conference USA Championship.
"Our 2026 schedule will be filled with high-quality competition throughout both the preseason and conference play," Volpe said. "We have always scheduled non-conference play with the intention of making a splash on the national stage, and the 2026 season is no different. The highlight of our preseason home schedule will be Rice Invitational II, as we host No.12 Louisville, No. 7 Creighton and No. 24 UNI. This will be one of the premier tournaments in the country right here in Tudor Fieldhouse.
"The conference slate is also filled with very competitive matches that should be exciting for our fans and will be capped off with us hosting the American Conference Tournament for the first time since joining the league. We are extremely excited for this fall season and hope our fans come out in a big way this year."
Continuing its trend of challenging non-conference schedules, Rice will face seven teams that finished in the top 25 of the 2025 RPI rankings, including reigning national champion Texas A&M. The schedule also features nine NCAA Tournament teams and three conference tournament champions from last season. Rice will also host the 2026 American Conference Championship at Tudor Fieldhouse from Nov. 19-22.
Rice will open preseason play with a pair of road scrimmages, beginning at Texas on Aug. 14 in Austin. The Longhorns finished the 2025 season ranked No. 2 in the RPI. The Owls will then travel across town to face Houston on Aug. 21.
The regular season begins Aug. 28-30 at the South Alabama Tournament in Mobile, Alabama, where Rice will face host South Alabama, Georgia State and Mississippi State. Rice returns home for its first regular-season match at Tudor Fieldhouse on Sept. 2 against Tarleton State at 6 p.m.
The Owls will host two home tournaments during the non-conference slate. Rice Invitational I, scheduled for Sept. 4-6, will feature McNeese State and Illinois. The following weekend, Rice welcomes Louisville, Creighton and UNI to Tudor Fieldhouse for Rice Invitational II.
The tournament opens Sept. 11 with two matches, highlighted by Rice facing Louisville at 6 p.m. Rice will then take on UNI at 4 p.m. on Sept. 12 before closing the weekend against Creighton at 2:30 p.m. on Sept. 13. All four programs reached the NCAA Tournament last season, with Creighton advancing to the Elite Eight.
Rice closes non-conference play with a road swing through Fort Worth, facing SMU on Sept. 17 and TCU on Sept. 18. The Owls wrap up the regular-season non-conference schedule Sept. 22 against reigning national champion Texas A&M in College Station.
Conference play opens at home as Rice hosts ECU on Sept. 25 and UAB on Sept. 27. The Owls begin October on the road with matches at South Florida on Oct. 2 and FAU on Oct. 4 before returning home to host Wichita State on Oct. 9 and Memphis on Oct. 11.
Rice heads back on the road the following week to face Tulsa on Oct. 16 and Wichita State on Oct. 18 before traveling to Denton for a matchup against North Texas on Oct. 23.
The Owls return to Tudor Fieldhouse for a three-match homestand, beginning with Tulsa on Oct. 25 before closing the month against Tulane on Oct. 28 and South Florida on Oct. 30.
Rice opens the final month of the regular season with road matches at UTSA on Nov. 6 and Temple on Nov. 8. The Owls will host Charlotte on Nov. 13 in their final home regular-season match before closing the regular season at Tulane on Nov. 15.
After winning the 2025 American Conference regular-season title, Rice will host the 2026 American Conference Championship from Nov. 19-22 at Tudor Fieldhouse. It marks the first conference tournament hosted by the Owls since the 2019 Conference USA Championship.
"Our 2026 schedule will be filled with high-quality competition throughout both the preseason and conference play," Volpe said. "We have always scheduled non-conference play with the intention of making a splash on the national stage, and the 2026 season is no different. The highlight of our preseason home schedule will be Rice Invitational II, as we host No.12 Louisville, No. 7 Creighton and No. 24 UNI. This will be one of the premier tournaments in the country right here in Tudor Fieldhouse.
"The conference slate is also filled with very competitive matches that should be exciting for our fans and will be capped off with us hosting the American Conference Tournament for the first time since joining the league. We are extremely excited for this fall season and hope our fans come out in a big way this year."
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