Rain, heat, sleet or shine, Kentucky volleyball will play Penn State in Chicago on Labor Day weekend.
The sport’s inaugural Big Ten/SEC challenge is scheduled to end Sunday, Sept. 6, with a historic doubleheader at Wrigley Field: UK vs. PSU at 7 p.m. and Nebraska vs. Missouri at 9 p.m. Both matches will be played on an elevated court just above second base. That is, weather permitting.
As host conference, the Big Ten has developed a number of contingency plans and safety precautions to ensure the wellbeing of all four teams involved. That includes reserving Wrigley Field, home of MLB’s Chicago Cubs, and Wintrust Arena, home of the WNBA’s Chicago Sky, for Monday, Sept. 7.
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“We have worked with the SEC, with the NCAA,” said Grace McNamara, the Big Ten sport administrator for volleyball. “We’re taking guidance from beach volleyball, USA Volleyball, trying to really meld together available resources for playing volleyball outside, while also realizing that this is traditional six-on-six and not beach.”
The league declined to share its inclement weather policy, but McNamara listed some extra equipment it’ll use to monitor the elements: a tarp to protect the Taraflex court from rain, court wipers in case of moisture and a WetBulb Globe Temperature monitor to measure the heat index.
WBGT monitoring helps prevent heat illness by providing a more in-depth measurement of outdoor conditions. It captures radiant heat, air movement, humidity and temperature. The NCAA requires WBGT monitoring for several outdoor sports. For example, the men’s and women’s soccer rule book for 2026 and 2027 establishes mandatory water breaks of two minutes or longer should the WBGT temperature reach at least 86 degrees Fahrenheit.
Installing the court horizontally just above second base, McNamara said, puts the high home camera “dead on” the action. There will be a “standing room” general admission section on the field and what the Big Ten is calling “courtside seating” next to the elevated playing surface (a similar setup to Nebraska’s outdoor match at Memorial Stadium in 2023).
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The Big Ten worked with sports and entertainment company BaAM Productions on designing the court, which will be installed Saturday, Sept. 5, allowing all four teams time to practice that evening. The Chicago Cubs have a three-game series with the Milwaukee Brewers from Sept. 1-3, then hit the road to play at the Miami Marlins Sept. 4-6, at the Brewers Sept. 7-9 and return home against the Pittsburgh Pirates Sept. 11.
“We’ve worked very closely with the Cubs,” McNamara said. “This is, of course, a first-of-its-kind event, but we’re pulling from their knowledge base on when they’re setting up (concert) stages and other events that they host in Wrigley that are not baseball.”
Reach college sports enterprise reporter Payton Titus at ptitus@gannett.com and follow her on X @petitus25. Subscribe to her “Full-court Press” newsletter here for a behind-the-scenes look at how college sports’ biggest stories are impacting Louisville and Kentucky athletics.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: How Wrigley Field is preparing for Kentucky and Big Ten/SEC volleyball
