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It won’t take Fort Valley State long into the season to see how it comes to the nation’s best.
Fort Valley State announced it will play the defending NCAA champions UCLA on Jan. 5 as part of a three-match West Coast road trip to open the 2024 season.
This will be the first time in the Wildcats’ three-year program history it will travel to the West Coast. It also will be the second all-time meeting between the Wildcats and Bruins – UCLA on the road hit .509 and swept Fort Valley State in 2022.
Fort Valley State finished last season in fourth place in the SIAC and advanced to the conference tournament semifinals. Freshman All-American outside attacker Isaiah Fedd was among the national leaders with a 3.43 kills per game average, including having at least 30 kills in two matches.
UCLA defeated Hawai’i in the NCAA Tournament finals last season for the program’s 20th all-time national championship and first since 2006. Setter Andrew Rowan, the National Newcomer of the Year, guided the offense to a nation-best .382 attack percentage and was in the nation’s top 15 averaging 0.46 aces per game.
The Wildcats unveiled this match against the Bruins along with the rest of their 2024 regular season schedule.
Fort Valley State will open the season at Pepperdine on Jan. 4 and then following the UCLA match will conclude its West Coast road trip against USC on Saturday. Both Pepperdine and UCLA were nationally ranked during the 2023 season.
Fort Valley State 2024 regular season schedule
Jan. 4 at Pepperdine
Jan. 5 at UCLA
Jan. 6 at USC
Jan. 12 at Talladega College
Jan. 20 vs. Truett McConnell
Feb. 4 vs. Life
Feb. 8 vs. St. Andrews
Feb. 13 at Emmanuel
Feb. 13 vs. Truett McConnell (at Emmanuel)
Feb. 16 vs. Talladega College
March 1 vs. Central State
March 2 vs. Kentucky State
March 6 vs. Saint Francis
March 7 vs. Emmanuel
March 8 vs. Morehouse
March 16 at Queens
March 16 vs. Tusculum (at Queens)
Mach 22 vs. Benedict
March 23 vs. Edward Waters
March 27 at Morehouse
April 3 vs. Reinhardt
April 5 at Kentucky State
April 6 at Central State
April 12 at Edward Waters
April 13 vs. Benedict