Lees-McRae Voted Preseason Women’s Volleyball Favorite
High Point, NC> Lees-McRae
College women's volleyball team has been voted as the
preseason favorite for the 2012 season. Lees-McRae enters a new era
this season under James Goodridge, who has served as the head coach
of the Bobcats’ men’s volleyball team for the past two
years. The Bobcats are primed to continue the program’s
recent success over the last 14 years, carrying a 58-match winning
streak in Conference Carolinas play into the season, which ranks
second among active streaks at the NCAA Division II level. With a
veteran corps led by seniors Megan Mitchell, Taylor Clendenin, Dana
Oliver, as well as a strong recruiting class, the Bobcats are
well-positioned in their quest for the program’s
conference-record 14th league title and a deep run into the NCAA
Tournament.
“Lees-McRae Women’s Volleyball is very
honored to be named as the top team in the preseason polls,”
expressed Goodridge. “However, we understand that it is not
how you start, but how you finish. With this mindset, we will work
hard to defend this preseason ranking and earn the top spot in the
end of the season polls. This is not an easy task as the conference
has gotten stronger each year that I have been here. With our own
coaching change, we can expect an uphill battle. But, the team and
the coaching staff are prepared for it, and we all look forward to
the challenge.”
The Queens University of Charlotte
Volleyball team is coming into the 2012 season after setting the
school record for wins and winning the East Division of Conference
Carolinas. With the program only graduating three seniors last year
the Royals are poised to build on their overall record of 23-9 and
15-2 in conference. Queens is returning 12 players including Keri
Kemp, Lindsey Everhart, and Anna Gibbs, all three of whom led the
Royals’ offense and were in the top four in kills on the
team. The Royal’s defense will be once again anchored by
libero Jocelyn Kellinger who led the team with 405 digs.
Queens will be led by second year head coach Lettie Wilkes who will
be joined by first year assistant Tammi Fries.
Erskine College is anchored by
two-time all-conference honoree, senior libero Brooke Dodge and
senior defensive specialist Bailey Thornton, Erskine led the
conference in digs, averaging 16.4 digs per set. Offensively,
Erskine must replace their two top threats in Sandra Campbell, last
year’s conference player of the year, and Jamie Murray, a
two-time all-conference honoree. The Flying Fleet do return
senior setter Larz Chabra, a three-time all-conference honoree, who
will once again direct the Fleet attack. Erskine will lean
heavily on their two senior outside hitters, Liz Massey, two-time
all-conference honoree, and Lauren Stewart.
King College finished fourth in the
poll with Limestone fifth followed by
Belmont Abbey, Mount Olive, Pfeiffer, Coker, North
Greenville, Barton, and Converse respectively rounding-out
the poll standings.
Conference Carolinas Women’s Volleyball
Preseason Poll (# of First Place Votes in Parenthesis)
1. Lees-McRae
………………………………………………………
(6) 113
2. Queens
……………………………………………………………
(6) 112
3. Erskine
……………………………………………………………
(0) 96
4. King
………………………………………………………………
92
5.
Limestone………………………………………………………….
76
6. Belmont Abbey
……………………………………………………
67
7. Mount Olive
……………………………………………………….
58
8. Pfeiffer
…………………………………………………………....
48
9. Coker
……………………………………………………………..
47
10. North
Greenville……………………………………………………
41
11. Barton
……………………………………………………………..
28
12.
Converse……………………………………………………………
14
Conference Carolinas is a NCAA Division II
athletic conference currently made up of 12 teams from North
Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. These institutions consist
of: Barton College, Belmont Abbey College, Coker College, Converse
College, Erskine College, King College, Lees-McRae College,
Limestone College, Mount Olive College, North Greenville
University, Pfeiffer University, and Queens University of
Charlotte.