Boston College volleyball is back at the Margot Connell Center this weekend, and the Eagles will spend September 3-5 hosting the Boston College Invitational. Stonehill, Bucknell and New Hampshire are on the schedule, with every match streaming on ACCNX.
The first test comes against Stonehill, a program Boston College has handled every time the teams have met. The Eagles are 3-0 in the series and have taken all nine sets from the Skyhawks, including a 3-0 win in the first meeting on Sept.
17, 2023. Stonehill arrives at 2-2 after opening the 2026 season at the University of New Orleans/Nicholls State Invitational, where it beat New Orleans and Alcorn State but dropped matches to Nicholls and Oral Roberts.
Outside hitter Sam Loyd powered the Skyhawks’ first win with 12 kills and a .500 hitting mark against New Orleans.
Saturday evening brings Bucknell, and that matchup has been on ice for 27 years. Boston College and Bucknell will meet for the fourth time in program history, with the Eagles holding wins in both previous meetings, 3-0 in 1992 and 1998.
Bucknell enters at 1-2 after starting its season at the Marshall Tournament. The Bison lost three-set matches to Ohio and Marshall before picking up a four-set win over Niagara, giving head coach John Post his first victory at Bucknell.
In that match, middle blocker Sidney Shaffer and opposite Marion Haskell each had 13 kills, and setter Peyton McGee turned in a career-high 47 assists.
Boston College closes the weekend against New Hampshire, and that one comes with a little more history behind it. The teams have met 18 times before, with the Wildcats leading the all-time series 11-7.
UNH won the latest matchup, a 3-1 result on Aug. 30, 2023.
The Wildcats are off to a 3-0 start after sweeping the Holly Young Invitational at home, opening with a five-set win over New Haven before straight-set victories over Saint Peter's and a 3-1 win against Providence. Outside hitter Emma Converse was named Tournament MVP after putting up a career-high 20 kills against the Friars, while Lucy Chertock and Rachel Grier earned spots on the America East Preseason All-Conference Team.
Boston College, though, comes into the invitational with plenty of momentum of its own after a clean sweep through the Chestnut Hill Invite to open the 2026 season. The Eagles opened with a 3-0 win over Air Force on Aug. 28, led by Audrey Ross, who posted a career-high 24 kills with a .475 hitting percentage and 26 points. Naomi Watson added 10 total blocks in her first career start, and Laney Blevins along with Ava McBride made their collegiate debuts.
Two days later, BC knocked off Quinnipiac 3-0 on Aug. 30.
Ross again paced the offense with 15 kills, while McBride handed out a game-high 20 assists. Freshmen Ava Castro, Mia Gold and Tiani Shaw also saw their first action in the win.
The 2-0 start is Boston College’s sixth straight season opening with at least two wins, the longest streak in program history.
The numbers from that opening weekend already have the Eagles near the top of the ACC. Through six sets, Boston College leads the conference in blocks per set at 3.83 and opponent blocks per set at 1.17, while ranking third in hitting percentage at .290.
Ross sits first in the league in kills per set at 6.50 and points per set at 7.00, and she also ranks seventh in hitting percentage at .429. Watson leads the ACC in blocks per set at 2.67 with 16 total blocks, which ties for fifth in the conference.
Sofija Marjanovic is second in service aces per set at 0.83, and Brooklyn Yelland ranks sixth in digs per set at 3.83.
Boston College has also been tough to beat in its own invitational. Across four editions of the event, the Eagles are 11-1, including last season’s run through Sacramento State, Dartmouth and UAlbany.
Ross piled up 42 kills and 21 digs across those three matches. In three of the four years Boston College has hosted the invitational, it has gone 3-0, and it has swept at least one opponent every time.
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