September 28, 2021
ATLANTA, Ga. – The Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) announced Tuesday that the 2022 CCSA Beach Volleyball Championship will be held at the John Hunt Sand Volleyball Complex in Huntsville, Ala., on Thursday, April 28 through Saturday, April 30. The 2022 edition marks the sixth championship for the CCSA in the sport of Beach Volleyball and the second consecutive year the event is hosted by the City of Huntsville. The league also announced the departure of six Beach Volleyball programs that will compete under the Conference USA banner next season. This split is the result of a partnership between the CCSA and C-USA in a joint effort to continue growth in the sport of Beach Volleyball and provide more opportunities for competition.
“We are delighted to collaborate with our colleagues in Conference USA and the Sun Belt to bring this plan to fruition”, said CCSA Commissioner Jerome Rodgers. “For the past two years, the CCSA has operated with a 14-team membership in the sport of Beach Volleyball which led to the 2021 Championship being conducted with two brackets – the Aqua and the Blue. The Blue teams represented the joint membership of Conference USA (UAB, FAU, FIU, Southern Miss) and the Sun Belt (Georgia State, ULM). This grouping, along with Sun Belt member Coast Carolina, will bring the inaugural C-USA Beach Volleyball group to seven members. The Aqua group (Florida State, LSU, Missouri State, South Carolina, TCU, Tulane) will continue operation under the CCSA banner.”
Conference USA is also slated to conduct its first-ever Beach Volleyball Championship from the John Hunt Sand Volleyball Complex on April 28-30 in Huntsville.
“We are quickly becoming an athletic powerhouse when it comes to crowning champions,” said Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle. “We have a world-class facility in the John Hunt Park Sand Volleyball Complex. And now, the best in the nation are headed to Huntsville. With the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association Beach Volleyball Championship returning in April 2022 and Conference USA now choosing the Rocket City to host its Beach Volleyball Conference Tournament in the same month, this elite facility is becoming a popular destination for the sport’s top events in the U.S.”
“We enjoyed hosting the CCSA Championship in Huntsville and value the relationship we have built with the CCSA,” said Huntsville Sports Commission Executive Director Mark Russell. “We are thrilled to welcome student-athletes back to the Rocket City for the CCSA Championship and for the first time ever the Conference USA Championship.”
Former league members, College of Charleston and UNCW announced their joining of the ASUN Conference in July. With this split between the CCSA and C-USA, both groups will have the requisite minimum number of members (six) and the requisite continuity of membership (two years) to be eligible for a selection into the NCAA Beach Volleyball Championship Tournament.
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The Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) is a progressive NCAA Division I conference dedicated to the enhancement of opportunities for students. The conference was founded in 2008 to provide a championship opportunity for Swimming and Diving student-athletes and extended that opportunity with the addition of Beach Volleyball in the summer of 2015. The league’s footprint extends into several states: Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia. The CCSA is dedicated to the student-athletes who compete in its championships and their success in the classroom, in the field of competition, and life after graduation.
The Huntsville Sports Commission is a not-for-profit, 501(c)(3), organization that promotes and enhances the quality of life in Huntsville by identifying, recruiting, promoting and staging sports events and meetings. For more information, contact Brooke Izzo, Director of Marketing & Communications, 256-883-3769, brooke.izzo@huntsvilleal.gov.