Louisville volleyball coach Dani Busboom Kelly before the first game
The Cardinals host Kentucky, Wisconsin and Nebraska at the AVCA First Serve Showcase
A quick look at the Louisville volleyball team’s 2024 schedule reveals something that may escape the casual observer, but Cardinals coach Dani Busboom Kelly and her team know the opportunity awaiting them: This year, the road to an NCAA championship begins and ends at the KFC Yum! Center.
The Cardinals, ranked sixth, begin their season Tuesday at 9 p.m. in the AVCA First Serve Showcase against third-place Wisconsin.
“We want a great schedule and to play against great teams. The game against Wisconsin was added late to the AVCA First Serve Classic, but it was a big deal to even get the opportunity to play,” said Busboom Kelly. “We’re excited to learn early, and we know we have to beat the best to be there in December.”
The Final Four will take place on December 19th and 22nd at the Yum! Center.
The Cardinals have accepted the challenge of reaching the Final Four in their city, knowing what it would mean to win an NCAA championship in their hometown – and the pressure that comes with it.
“There’s so much talk about it; we try to be open to those conversations. We just have to get used to it so we can mentally prepare ourselves and know that this is what this season is going to be like,” said Anna DeBeer, the 2023 ACC Player of the Year.
DeBeer’s return has been great for the Cardinals. The fifth-grader and Assumption High School graduate would love to end her college volleyball career in her hometown at the peak of her career.
“(Anna) has really grown our program in the city, I think, and helped the fan base grow so quickly. Having someone from the area in that role just brings a level of love and joy and a desire to be great, because usually they’re playing for something other than themselves,” Busboom Kelly said.
If Louisville reaches the Final Four, Elena Scott, a Mercy Academy graduate and 2023 ACC Defensive Player of the Year, would have a chance to win an NCAA title in her hometown.
“It’s very exciting to see Anna and Elena, who are both possibly two of the best players of all time in the city of Louisville, playing in Louisville and having a chance to make the Final Four in Louisville. It’s a pretty unreal story,” said Busboom Kelly, who has reached the Final Four twice as U of L coach.
The Cardinals are looking to become the fourth school in Division I history to win an NCAA volleyball championship on its home court. UCLA (1984 and 1991), Pacific (1986) and Nebraska (2006) have all done so. The Cornhuskers also won the NCAA title in 2015 in Omaha, Nebraska.
“It’s going to be a really exciting year for volleyball, super competitive. Some players that will probably be in the Olympics one day are going to be competing in the NCAA this year,” Busboom Kelly said. “We’re going to need a little bit of luck, and honestly it’s probably going to come down to the best team and the best culture, because the talent is going to be pretty equal across the board, so which team is the toughest and which team plays the best together.”
The Cardinals, who return this season with six regulars, were just one game away from the Final Four last year but lost to ACC rival Pittsburgh in the Elite Eight.
Louisville was expected to finish third in the ACC this season behind perennial powerhouses Pittsburgh and Stanford.
Where: KFC Yum! Center
Playing time: Tuesday, 9 p.m. ET
Transmitted: ESPN2
- 27 August – against Wisconsin (AVCA showcase for first serve)
- 1 September – Tennessee
- 3 September – at Penn State
- 6 September – vs. South Dakota (Northern Kentucky Tournament)
- 7 September – vs. Missouri (Northern Kentucky Tournament)
- 8 September – vs. Northern Kentucky (Northern Kentucky Tournament)
- 14 September – Northern Iowa
- 15 September – Creighton
- 18 September – in Kentucky
- 22 September – Nebraska
- 27 September – California
- 29 September – Stanford
- October 4 – Clemson
- October 6 – Georgia Tech Institute
- 11 October – at Florida State
- 13 October – in Miami
- 18 October – Wake Forest
- 20 October – NC State
- 25 October – Pittsburgh
- 27 October – at SMU
- October 30 – Notre-Dame
- 2 November – at Notre Dame
- 8 November – in Syracuse
- 10 November – at Boston College
- 15 November – duke
- 17 November – North Carolina
- 22 November – in Virginia
- 24 November – at Virginia Tech
- 27 November – Pittsburgh
- 30 November – at Stanford
Reach sports reporter Prince James Story at [email protected] and follow him on X at @PrinceJStory.
