BUIES CREEK, N.C.-Perhaps the most competitive schedule in Campbell volleyball history, the Camels will see action against three-time defending NCAA Champion Penn State, plus all four Tar Heel State ACC members during the 2010 campaign.

"We're lucky to have some great programs around us to give us some great competition to prepare us for our conference schedule," said head coach Leigh Mullins. "We're excited and honored to be able to go up and play in the North Carolina tournament, as well as William & Mary, Wake Forest and UNC Wilmington."

Four 2009 NCAA Tournament teams await CU on the slate, including Penn State, Duke, Coastal Carolina and Lipscomb. Campbell is coming off a 17-15 2009 season where the Camels notched their most wins since 2001 and set a school record for conference wins with 10. Campbell was also 13-6 away from Buies Creek, as one of the Atlantic Sun's best road teams.

"We play against six major conference schools and don't even have to leave the state," Mullins stated. "There is just so much talent in this area."

The Camels will compete in four tournaments through the season, beginning with the Carolina Classic on Aug. 27 inside historic Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, N.C. Kicking the season off with Villanova, Campbell will also face off with back-to-back-to-back national champion Penn State and North Carolina.

The Nittany Lions are riding a 102 game win streak and will meet the Camels for the first time in their history. The Camels have also never faced Villanova, and are 0-2 against UNC all time.

Campbell will follow with a trip to Durham, N.C. to face Duke inside Cameron Indoor Stadium on Aug. 31 for their first meeting since 2004. The Camels will also make single match trips to Big South rivals High Point and Coastal Carolina.

William & Mary will welcome Campbell, along with American and Hampton for the Camels' second tournament of the season. The Tribe Invitational also features some unfamiliar foes for CU, having the competition a combined three times ever. Campbell is 2-0 against Hampton, 0-1 vs. American and has never squared off with W&M.

The Camels will finally make their 2010 debut in Buies Creek on Sept. 7, taking on Coastal Carolina at 6 p.m. Campbell will also host North Carolina Central in nonconference home action on Sept. 21.

CU's next stop will be Winston-Salem, N.C. to take on East Carolina, West Virginia and Wake Forest in the Deacon Invitational. ECU is one of the Camels' most frequent opponents, having faced the Pirates 39 times over the years, including a 3-1 loss last season in Buies Creek. The Camels are 0-5 all-time against Wake Forest.

The final tournament of the regular season will be UNCW Classic, where CU will meet Elon, UNC Wilmington and North Carolina State. The Camels have also met the Seahawks 39 times in the rivalry's history, and hold a 9-1 all-time mark against Elon. Last season, Campbell downed NC State 3-0, completing their first three game sweep of a major conference opponent ever, taking down the Wolfpack inside Reynolds Coliseum.

For the first time since 2007, the A-Sun conference schedule will consist of a single round robin format, with each member playing each other once. Campbell will host East Tennessee State, Florida Gulf Coast, Stetson, Kennesaw State and Mercer inside the John W. Pope Jr. Convocation Center in 2010, while traveling to USC Upstate, Belmont, Lipscomb, Jacksonville and North Florida.

"We only play 10 A-Sun matches and only six teams go to the tournament," said Mullins. "With our given conference format, every match has to count."

The A-Sun Tournament will begin on Thursday, Nov. 11 in Ft. Myers, Fla. and will be hosted by FGCU for the second straight year. The league championship game will be on the following Saturday.

"We've had a great recruiting year and have some super returners, so we wanted to build a schedule that would challenge them and prepare us for our conference season," added Mullins. "I think we accomplished that with this schedule."