MOC fall schedules announced

Published in Sports on July 24, 2005 2:01 AM

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MOUNT OLIVE -- Mount Olive's men's soccer team opens with a pair of exhibition games, starting with a trip to Greenville on August 20 to take on Division I East Carolina. The Trojans play host to North Carolina Wesleyan two days later in their final preseason tune-up.

Mount Olive kicks off its regular season campaign August 27-28 as the Trojans play host to the Mount Olive College Invitational, sponsored by Sleep Inn. Along with Mount Olive, participating teams include Chowan, Lander and St. Andrews.

The Trojans open conference play September 10 at Erskine, part of a four-match road trip. Mount Olive plays only two home matches during the month of September.

Four of Mount Olive's first six conference matches are on the road, including an October 8 match-up against nationally-ranked Queens. The Trojans eliminated Queens in the semifinal round of last year's CVAC Tournament.

Mount Olive kicks off a three-match homestand October 15 as the Trojans play host to Belmont Abbey in a rematch of the championship game of last year's CVAC Tournament. Mount Olive plays its home finale against Lees-McRae and concludes the regular season October 29 at Barton.

The top eight teams in the regular season standings advance to the CVAC Men's Soccer Tournament, which begins November 2 with the top four seeds hosting first-round matches. The semifinals and championship take place November 5-6 at Belmont Abbey.

Mount Olive hopes for its first-ever bid to NCAA Division II post-season play, which opens with first-round play November 10 and concludes with the national finals December 2-4.

Mount Olive posted a record of 14-5-3 overall and 7-3-0 in the CVAC last year. The Trojans went on to win their first-ever CVAC Men's Soccer Tournament championship.

Women's soccer

On the heels of a 20-win season and first-ever Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference championship, the Mount Olive College women's soccer team kicks off its 2005 season the weekend of August 27-28.

After opening with a non-conference match-up at North Greenville, the Trojans get an early start on conference play at new CVAC member Converse. Mount Olive hits the road again the following weekend with a pair of matches in Florida before playing its home opener September 8 against Chowan.

In mid-September, Mount Olive has back-to-back rematches of contests from last year's CVAC Women's Soccer Tournament. The Trojans travel to first-round opponent Limestone September 17, then play host to semifinalist Pfeiffer September 21.

The Trojans have five home contests in October, including an October 15 match-up against last year's regular season champion Belmont Abbey, which handed Mount Olive one of its only two conference losses last year. Mount Olive plays its home finale October 22 against Lees-McRae in a rematch of the championship game of last year's CVAC Tournament.

Mount Olive wraps up regular season play October 29 at Barton.

The Trojans' non-conference schedule is highlighted by a trip to Salisbury, October 25 to face Catawba, which reached the championship match of the 2004 NCAA II Southeast Regional and was ranked No. 13 in the final national poll.

The top eight teams in the regular season standings advance to the CVAC Women's Soccer Tournament, which begins November 1 with the top four seeds hosting first-round matches. The semifinals and championship take place November 4-5 at Belmont Abbey.

Mount Olive hopes for its first-ever bid to NCAA Division II post-season play, which opens with first-round play November 11 and concludes with the national finals December 1-3.

Mount Olive posted a record of 20-3-0 overall and 8-2-0 in the CVAC last year. The Trojans went on to win their first-ever CVAC Women's Soccer Tournament championship and an NCAA Division II women's soccer record for the greatest single-season improvement.

Women's volleyball

Road trips to Florida and West Virginia, as well as a visit to the site of the Trojans' first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance highlight the 2005 schedule for the Mount Olive College women's volleyball team. The season gets underway August 26 as Mount Olive plays host to Shaw.

After an early-season trip to Florida to face Sunshine State Conference members Rollins and Florida Southern, Mount Olive opens Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference play at Coker, then plays six consecutive matches at home, all against CVAC opponents.

After the six-match homestand, the Trojans are on the road for more than three weeks before returning home October 18 to play host to seven-time defending CVAC champion Lees-McRae. Mount Olive has two more home matches in October and plays its home finale November 2 against Pfeiffer.

Mount Olive concludes regular season play November 5 at Lees-McRae.

Mount Olive takes to the road for a pair of regular season tournaments, competing in the Wheeling Jesuit (W. Va.) University Tournament at the end of September and the Lock Haven University (Pa.) Classic in mid-October. Lock Haven played host to the 2004 NCAA Division II Volleyball Atlantic Regional.

The CVAC Volleyball Tournament takes place November 11-13 at St. Andrews. The tournament opens with first-round play-in matches, followed by quarterfinal and semifinal round action on the second day. The championship match is slated for November 13.

The Trojans hope for a return trip to the NCAA II Women's Volleyball Championship, which gets underway November 17 with the Atlantic Regional and concludes with the national finals December 1-3.

Mount Olive posted an overall record of 24-13 last season and finished second in the CVAC standings with a 15-3 mark.