PORTLAND, Ore. --- The Portland Pilots volleyball team, under the guidance of the reigning West Coast Conference coach of the year Brent Crouch, will open the 2017 season in Laramie, Wyo., at the Rumble in the Rockies tournament August 25-26.  The Pilots face Abilene Christian, South Dakota, and tournament host Wyoming, before returning home to host their first tournament of the season, the North Harbour Marriott Invitational.
 
Abilene Christian is led by first-year head coach Angela Mooney and closed out last season with a 12-19 overall record, in addition to a third-place finish in the Southland Conference with an 11-5 mark. South Dakota makes their way to Laramie coming off of their most successful season in program history, setting a program record in 2016 with 25 wins and capturing the program's first conference title by winning a share of the Summit League regular season crown. The Coyotes also claimed runner-up honors in the Summit League Tournament. Wyoming, the tournament host, finished 18-13 last season that included an 11-7 mark in Mountain West play, and they return 10 letterwinners. 
 
Portland then plays their first matches at the friendly confines when they welcome Alabama State, Fresno State, and Oregon State to the Chiles Center for the North Harbour Marriott Invitational September 1 and 2. Alabama State comes to the Northwest off of an impressive season where they made their fourth NCAA Tournament appearance after they went undefeated in conference, going 18-0 during the regular season before winning all three matches in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament.
 
Following the home stand, the Pilots will embark on their final non-conference road trip, heading to Albuquerque, N.M., for the Lobo Classic September 8-9. Portland will battle tournament host New Mexico, UT Arlington, and Northern Colorado while in Albuquerque. The Lobos enter the 2017 season off of a 17-win campaign in 2016.
 
The team then returns home to host their final tournament of the season before the start of conference play. The Nike Invitational will take place Wednesday, September 13 and continue on Friday the 15th and Saturday the 16th. The tournament features cross-town rival Portland State, as well as CSUN and UTEP. PSU comes to The Bluff after posting a 23-7 record in their 2016 season.
 
The Pilots enter the 2017 WCC season coming off of a historical finish in 2016 when they tied for third in conference and claimed wins over No. 11 BYU and at No. 7 San Diego, the highest ranked wins ever for the Portland program. Portland's 17 wins in the 2016 season were the most in a season since 1986 and the team's win percentage was the best since Portland joined Division I in 1986. Their 10 conference wins were also the most in school history. Junior Hannah Troutman earned All-WCC First Team honors, while setter Cali Thompson earned All-Freshman Team recognition.
 
Portland will open up conference play at home against Pacific and Saint Mary's on September 21 and 23, before heading to Northern California the following weekend to battle San Francisco and Santa Clara. Last season, the Pilots swept the Gaels to mark their fourth straight win over Saint Mary's and also recorded their first win against Santa Clara in the Leavey Center since 1994.
 
The team will then return to the Bluff and to welcome LMU and Pepperdine to the Chiles Center on October 5 and 6, before they head south for a difficult first road trip against defending WCC champion BYU and runner up San Diego. Following the road trip, the Pilots will again return home to host Gonzaga and conference rival Santa Clara, as well as compete in a lone match against San Francisco the following weekend on October 18.
 
Heading into the last month of conference, the Pilots will travel to Southern California to take on Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount. Last season, Portland recorded its first ever season sweep over the Waves as well as its second ever win in Malibu. November 9 and 11 will mark the Pilots final home weekend of conference as well as senior day, with matches again against last season's top ranked teams San Diego and BYU. The last three games of conference will be on the road for Portland, as the Pilots make one more trip to the Bay Area to face Saint Mary's and Pacific, before heading north to Gonzaga.
 
Tickets are now on sale online.