SAN LUIS OBISPO – Fifth-year volleyball head coach Jon Stevenson and the Cal Poly Athletics Department lifted the curtain Thursday afternoon on the program’s 2009 schedule, another competitive 29-match slate that features eight total contests against squads that qualified for last year’s NCAA Tournament and places the Mustangs on the road for the opening three weeks of the campaign.

Cal Poly, which is scheduled to return seven players and two starters from last year’s squad that finished 16-13 overall and in third place in the Big West Conference standings behind an 11-5 mark, kickstarts the program’s 31st season of varsity competition Friday, Aug. 28 at the Colorado State-hosted Asics Classic against Oregon State (14-17, 2008). The match versus the Beavers begins at 3:30 p.m. PT, as does Cal Poly’s Aug. 29 encounter versus 2008 NCAA Tournament qualifier Pepperdine (20-8). The Mustangs complete the competition against the host Rams (23-7) Sun., Aug. 30 at 1 p.m. Mountain West Conference runners-up a season ago, Colorado State also reached the second round of the 2008 NCAA Tournament.

Cal Poly faces 2008 NCAA Tournament regional qualifier and defending Mountain West champion Utah (26-6) Tuesday, Sept. 1 at 6 p.m. before opening play at the BYU-hosted Molten Classic against the Cougars (14-12) Friday, Sept. 4 at 6 p.m. Tournament action concludes with a Sept. 5 doubleheader versus NCAA Tournament participant Kansas State (24-8) at 9 a.m. and against Weber State (21-13) at 4 p.m.

Defending Sun Belt Conference West Division champion Denver (25-7) plays host to the Sept. 11-12 CU-DU Volleyball Tournament and opens the competition Friday versus Cal Poly at 6 p.m. Tournament action for the Mustangs resumes Saturday, Sept. 12 versus 2008 NCAA Tournament selectee and defending West Coast Conference champion San Diego (23-4) at 10 a.m. and against Colorado (13-16) at 6 p.m.

“I am more excited about the upcoming season than any other during my college coaching career,” said Stevenson, the 2006 and 2007 Big West Coach of the Year. “We have a tremendous influx of youthful talent and a new opportunity to move forward with a positive and creative purpose.”

The Mustangs, whose incoming freshman class includes six players ranked among prepvolleyball.com’s 150 Senior Aces, return to the central coast Friday, Sept. 18 to host the second-annual Mission Inn of Pismo Beach Invitational. The Mustangs open their tournament draw at 10 a.m. against reclassifying Division I program Seattle (9-21) before returning to face 2008 NCAA Tournament second round qualifier Santa Clara (18-10) at 7:30 p.m. The Mustangs complete the non-conference portion of their schedule Saturday, Sept. 19 versus Idaho (19-10) at 7 p.m. UC Santa Barbara completes the tournament field. The complete Mission Inn of Pismo Beach Invitational schedule can be viewed above, as can each of Cal Poly’s 2009 fixtures.

Big West champions and NCAA Tournament qualifiers during the 2006 and 2007 campaigns, Cal Poly continues its season-long, five-match homestand and opens conference play against 2008 runner-up UC Irvine (17-12, 12-4) Friday, Sept. 25.

After facing UC Riverside (8-23, 3-13) in Mott Gym the following evening, Cal Poly contests a four-match roadtrip that includes visits to defending Big West champion and NCAA Tournament participant Long Beach State (26-6, 13-3) Saturday, Oct. 3 and UC Santa Barbara (11-16, 7-19) Saturday, Oct. 10.

Cal Poly, 35-7 inside Mott Gym under Stevenson, completes the opening half of conference play with Oct. 16 and 17 home matches against, respectively, UC Davis (12-17, 4-12) and Pacific (12-16, 10-6). Long Beach State enters Mott Gym Friday, Oct. 30 ahead of UC Santa Barbara’s visit on Saturday, Nov. 7. The Mustangs complete the regular season by hosting Cal State Northridge (9-21, 3-13) Friday, Nov. 20.

All Big West matches begin at 7 p.m.

The draw for the 2009 NCAA Tournament as well as the announcement of the 16 sub-regional host sites will be released Sunday, Nov. 29. First- and second-round fixtures will be contested Dec. 3-6 while regional round action, hosted by Florida, Minnesota, Nebraska and Stanford, takes place between Dec. 10-13. The 29th NCAA Championship opens Dec. 17 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa Bay.

Tickets for all Cal Poly athletics contests can be purchased online at gopoly.com. Click on the “TICKETS” link on the left side of the home page or call (805) 756-5806. The ticket office is located in front of the Cal Poly Recreation Center at the corner of South Perimeter and Via Carta. Office hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Seating charts of Mott Gym and all Cal Poly athletics facilities are located at gopoly.com under the “TICKETS” link.