August 24, 2011

MAC Preseason Coaches Polls

Elizabethtown College has been selected to win the Commonwealth Conference as they are the favorites in the annual coaches’ preseason poll by earning 45 points.

A staple in the Commonwealth Conference Championship match over the last half decade, the Elizabethtown College women's volleyball team will look to return to the title match for a sixth consecutive season in 2011. Hopes of capturing the second conference championship in program history ride on the shoulders of 10 returnees, six of whom were regulars in a Blue Jays lineup that went 23-10 overall and 6-1 in league play a year ago. Elizabethtown, which won the Commonwealth Conference Championship in 2007, fell to Lebanon Valley in the conference final last November.

Chief among the returnees for 10th year head coach Randall Kreider is 2010 Commonwealth Conference Player of the Year, Holly Bubb. The junior led the conference with 319 kills during the regular season last fall and cultivated AVCA Division III All-Mid-Atlantic Region and All-America Honorable Mention accolades in addition to being honored as Player of the Year. Also back in the fold for 2011 are fellow 2010 All-Conference First Team selections Lindsay Palm and Andrea Weaver, as well as second team pick Kelsey Hayes.

The Blue Jays open their season at York College on September 3. The Commonwealth Conference Championship begins November 2 with semifinal games on campus of the higher seeds, followed by the championship game on November 5.

2011 Commonwealth Conference Volleyball Preseason Poll
1. Elizabethtown 45 pts. (4)
2. Messiah 41 pts. (2)
3. Lebanon Valley 39 pts. (2)
4. Widener 35 pts.
5. Albright 21 pts.
6t. Arcadia 16 pts.
6t. Lycoming 16 pts.
8. Alvernia 11 pts.

(#) denotes fist place votes

Eastern University, three time defending Freedom Conference champions, once again are the unanimous preseason favorites by earning 49 points in the annual coaches preseason poll.

Eastern Volleyball starts the year ranked 7th in the AVCA preseason poll. Coach Birtwistle's squad boasts a pair of three-time All-Americans in Maria Horning and Courtney Reinhold. Horning has won Freedom Conference Player of the Year Honors in each of her three seasons in St. Davids.

The Eagles, who did not lose any players to graduation, face a gauntlet of challenges with road tests at #2 Emory, #3 Washington University (St. Louis), and #4 Christopher Newport. They will also play at #21 NYU. Eastern has not lost a conference regular season game since 1999.

The Eagles open their season at the Gettysburg Tournament on September 2 against Rivier College. The Freedom Conference Championship begins November 2 with semifinal games on campus at the higher seeds, followed by the championship game on November 5.

2011 Freedom Conference Volleyball Preseason Poll
1. Eastern 49 pts. (8)
2. FDU-Florham 41 pts.
3. DeSales 36 pts.
4. Misericordia 29 pts.
5. Delaware Valley 25 pts.
6. Wilkes 20 pts.
7. King’s 16 pts.
8. Manhattanville 8 pts.

(#) denotes fist place votes