The Jackets will make their official return to O’Keefe Gymnasium hosting the GT Invitational and subsequent Georgia Tech Classic. Tech will take on a combined three teams who each reached the NCAA tournament last season and finished ranked or receiving votes in the final American Volleyball Coaches Association Top 25 – Dayton, BYU and Ohio State, the latter of whom the Jackets swept in last season’s Sweet 16. The White and Gold will later host nine Atlantic Coast Conference foes highlighted by Pitt (Oct. 9) and Louisville (Nov. 11), the former being hosted in McCamish Pavilion, the first volleyball match since the arena’s completed renovation in 2012.
Over the course of the past three seasons, Georgia Tech is 35-5 at home in O’Keefe Gymnasium. The Jackets went 12-3 on The Flats in 2021. Tech is 294-102 (.742) all time in O’Keefe Gymnasium’s 27-year history.
Georgia Tech will battle stiff competition on the road to a potential third straight appearance in the Big Dance as 10 of its 2022 opponents competed in the 64-team field of the 2021 NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship, excluding exhibition opponent South Carolina who also advanced to the postseason. The White and Gold will play 13 total games against those 10 teams, including four against two Final Four opponents and three against Sweet 16 opponents. Debarring Dayton who received votes, six of the aforementioned 10 teams finished ranked in the final 2021 AVCA Top 25, including two in the top five and three in the top 10. The Jackets concluded the 2021 season in the Elite Eight, ranked No. 8 accordingly in the final AVCA poll, tying the 2003 squad for the highest ranking in program history at a season’s end.
Opponents in the 2021 NCAA Tournament
South Carolina (Aug. 21, away | exhibition) – First Round
Ole Miss (Aug. 26, away) – First Round
Illinois (Aug. 27, neutral) – Sweet 16
Dayton (Sep. 2, home) – Second Round
BYU (Sep. 8, home) – Sweet 16
Ohio State (Sep. 11, home) – Sweet 16
Louisville (Oct. 2, away / Nov. 11, home) – Final Four
Pitt (Oct. 9, home / Nov. 23, away) – Final Four
North Carolina (Oct. 28, away) – First Round
Miami (Nov. 4, away) – Second Round
Florida State (Nov. 6, away / Nov. 26, home) – Second Round
Opponents in the 2020 AVCA Final Rankings
No. 16 Illinois (Aug. 27, neutral)
No. 9 BYU (Sep. 8, home)
No. 11 Ohio State (Sep. 11, home)
No. 3 Louisville (Oct. 2, away / Nov. 11, home)
No. 4 Pitt (Oct. 9, home / Nov. 23, away)
No. 25 Miami (Nov. 4, away)
Gearing up
Georgia Tech heads into the 2022 season on the heels of a 2021 season that saw the Jackets sweep The Citadel, No. 17 WKU and No. 9 Ohio State to advance to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Championship for the second time in program history, tying 2003’s unit for the best finish and final ranking (No. 8) of all time. Statistically, the White and Gold also led the nation in kills per set (15.18) and assists per set (13.90).
The berth in the Big Dance alone marked the 11th time in program history, the second for the Yellow Jackets since 2009 and the second appearance under reigning AVCA East Coast Region Coach of the Year Michelle Collier. Going beyond 2019’s NIVC title, Tech has won 58 of its last 70 matches.
Junior outside hitter Julia Bergmann leads Tech’s returners coming off an unrivaled campaign that earned her AVCA First Team All-American honors, AVCA East Coast Region Player of the Year and All-Region recognition, ACC Player of the Year and First Team All-ACC selections. Other all-conference performers headlining Tech’s 13 total returners include graduate middle blocker Breland Morrissette (Second Team All-ACC) and sophomore outside hitter Bianca Bertolino (ACC All-Freshman Team). The incumbents will be joined by four incoming Jackets, including two transfers and two freshmen, featuring another all-American in Tamara Otene.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, follow us on Instagram (@GTVolleyball), Twitter (@GTVolleyball), Facebook (Georgia Tech Volleyball) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com.
