Campbellsville University opens the 2010 season a few spots above its 2009 finish in the Tachikara-NAIA Volleyball Coaches Poll. The Tigers received 12 points in the 2010 preseason poll, released Tuesday.

CU begins its defense of the 2009 National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Volleyball championship with a trip to Malone University next weekend, Aug. 27-28. The Tigers beat Malone in three sets to win the NCCAA title last December.

Campbellsville missed out on the NAIA Tournament in 2009, finishing runner-up in the Mid-South Conference behind Georgetown College, who finished the 2009 season ranked No. 6 but open 2010 at No. 23. First-year Mid-South Conference opponent Shawnee State University is the highest ranked team in the conference, sitting at No. 19 preseason.

Six other ranked teams are on the Tigers' schedule this year: No. 4 Lee University, No. 10 Taylor University, No. 11 Indiana Tech, No. 12 Olivet Nazarene University, No. 35 Savannah College of Art and Design and No. 41 Union College.