PHILADELPHIA – The Fairleigh Dickinson University women's volleyball team will begin the 2013 season at the La Salle Invitational on Saturday, Aug. 31 and Sunday, Sept. 1.

The Knights will compete in four matches in the two-day event, hosted by the Explorers at Tom Gola Arena.

FDU will open the year with a 9 a.m. match against the host before taking on the Bison of Bucknell on Saturday at 4 p.m.

The Knights will continue action on Sunday with an 11 a.m. bout with Lafayette and a 4 p.m. meeting with Sacramento State.

FDU returns eight letterwinners from a team a year ago that finished 8-21 with a 4-12 Northeast Conference mark. However, the team will have to replace Meaghan Wheeler (Chatsworth, CA/Chaminade College Prep), a three-time All-NEC performer who graduated in May as one of the greatest players to ever play for FDU.

Up front the Knights return redshirt senior Violeta Slabakova (Shelby Township, Mich./Utica), junior Hanifa Addi (Springdale, Md./Charles H. Flowers) and sophomore Maddie Gibbons (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview Heights), who combined to start 59 matches and record 335 kills. In the back sophomore Allison Butler (Plano, Texas/Plano) and senior Taylor Roland-Buohl (Lancaster, Pa./Lampeter-Strasburg) combined to start every match but one and registered a tandem total of 496 digs. Butler also dished out a team-best 959 assists.

The Knights fell to Lafayette in 2012 but recorded wins against La Salle and Bucknell in their last meetings.  It will be the first time FDU has faced Sacramento State.

Following opening weekend, the Knights will return to Stratis Arena to host Rider University on Wednesday, Sept. 4.  The match is slated for 7 p.m.