The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Rachael Adams named to 2016 FIVB World Grand Prix Weekend 1 roster
06.06.2016 | Volleyball
The Texas All-American will play for No. 1 Team USA in Ningbo, China.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Longhorn alum Rachael Adams is one of 14 players from around the country to make the 14-player FIVB World Grand Prix opening weekend roster, USA Volleyball announced on Monday.
Adams will represent the U.S. Women's National Team, ranked No. 1 in the world by the FIVB in Ningbo, China beginning on Friday, June 10.
The FIVB World Grand Prix schedule has each of the 12 teams in Group 1 playing three preliminary round weekends in various cities before the top five teams and Thailand compete in the Final Round from July 6-10 in Bangkok, Thailand.
Team USA will open the World Grand Prix against Germany on June 10 at 2 a.m. CT, followed by Thailand on Saturday, June 11 at 2 p.m. CT and China on Sunday, June 12 at 6:30 a.m. CT.
The U.S. has won the FIVB World Grand Prix six times since the premier annual international women's volleyball tournament commenced in 1993, including winning four of the last six titles. The Americans captured gold last year in Omaha, Neb., while hosting the event for the first on USA soil. Team USA has won six of its last seven tournaments it has competed in, dating back to the 2014 FIVB World Championship title in Italy.
After its three matches in China, Team USA will return home to host a preliminary round weekend at Long Beach State University's Walter Pyramid with matches against Germany on Friday, June 17 at 9 p.m. CT, Japan on Saturday, June 18 at 9 p.m. CT and Turkey on Sunday, June 19 at 7 p.m. CT. These will be the final three matches on home soil before competing in the Olympic Games in August.
The Americans will conclude the World Grand Prix preliminary phase with three matches in Hong Kong. The U.S. faces Germany on Friday, June 24 at 5:30 a.m. CT, the Netherlands on Saturday, June 25 at 12:15 a.m. CT and China on Sunday, June 26 at 2:45 a.m. CT.