BUIES CREEK, N.C.-Campbell volleyball will kick off the 2010 season on Friday, Aug. 27 inside historic Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, N.C. with arguably the most competitive tournament in the program's history. The Camels will face off with Villanova, North Carolina and three-time defending national champion Penn State over the weekend at the Carolina Classic.

Campbell and Villanova will open the two-day tourney at 5 p.m. on Friday. Carolina and No. 1 Penn State will lock up at 8 p.m. in the Friday's finale. After Villanova and PSU meet to open Saturday's competition, the Camels will take on UNC at 1 p.m. Campbell's third and final match of the tournament is slated to start at 5:30 p.m. against Penn State. The Tar Heels will close the Carolina Classic with Villanova at 7:30 p.m.

The Camels' 5 p.m. contest with Villanova will be the first volleyball match played inside Carmichael Arena since Nov. 10, 2007. Formerly know as Carmichael Auditorium, the arena went under renovations, reopening during the 2009-10 women's basketball season.

The top-ranked 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.

The Camels return five starters and nine total letterwinners from a squad that collected the program's most wins since 2001 and established themselves as one of the Atlantic Sun Conference's top road teams, going 13-7 away from Buies Creek. That mark includes a 4-1 neutral site record.

Opening last season at the NC State / Hilton RTP Classic, Campbell raced through the tournament with a 4-0 record, downing the host Wolfpack 3-0, and claiming weekend title.

Five seniors anchor an experienced Campbell unit, including A-Sun Preseason All-Conference selection Emily Werner. A senior outside hitter, Werner led the Camels in kills (2.88 per set), attack attempts (984 total) and points (3.41 per set) in 2009 while recording eight double-doubles.

Caitlin Bendy, a senior middle blocker, emerged as one of the A-Sun's top threats in the interior a year ago, finishing second in blocks per set (1.13) and eighth in attack percentage (.284) in the conference.

Senior outside hitter Allyson Goldbach (2.14 kills per set, 38 aces), junior setter Hope Leatigaga (7.76 assists per set) and sophomore outside hitter Jordan Reaves (1.29 kills, 2.00 digs per set, A-Sun All-Freshman team) also highlight an experienced Campbell team.

Villanova, 16-13 overall and 5-9 in Big East play in 2009, returns its top pair of hitters from last season with junior middle Maggie Mergen and sophomore outside hitter Krista Andersen. Mergen tallied 3.17 while Andersen posted 3.01 kills per set a year ago for the Wildcats.

The Tar Heels finished 2009 with 15-16 overall and 11-9 ACC marks. Sophomore outside hitter Emily McGee (2.92 kills per set) and junior libero Kaylie Gibson (4.31 digs per set) highlight a list of 13 letterwinners returning for UNC.

The top-ranked Nittany Lions, who will lock up with the Camels at 5:30 p.m., posted a perfect 38-0 record with their third-straight NCAA championship last season. Despite losing National Player of the Year and Durham, N.C. native Megan Hodge, PSU returns senior middle Blair Brown (2.97 kills per set) and senior middle Arielle Wilson (2.76 kills per set).

Admission: Admission to the Carolina Classic is free.

Parking information: Parking is available on a first-come-first-serve basis after 5 p.m. on weeknights and weekends at the following locations: Highway 54 Lot, Stadium Drive and Boshamer Lot. In addition, the Rams Head Parking Deck, located on Ridge Road, is available for the price of $1.50 per hour.