 |  |
Volleyball Picked Eighth In NEC Preseason Coaches' Poll
2011 Quinnipiac Volleyball Schedule
HAMDEN, Conn. – The Northeast Conference’s coaches have selected the Quinnipiac University volleyball team to finish eighth in the league in the annual preseason coaches’ poll, the league office today announced. The Bobcats look to improve on a 6-24 record, including a 4-12 mark in conference play in 2010.
Defending champion Sacred Heart was picked to repeat, while
Robert Morris and Central Connecticut each took a first-place vote
in being chosen second and third, respectively. Perennially-strong
Long Island was picked to round out the four-team NEC Tournament
field as the No. 4 selection, while Saint Francis (Pa.) was
selected fifth. In a tie for sixth were Bryant and Fairleigh
Dickinson. Following Quinnipiac in the ninth and final position was
St. Francis (N.Y.).
Senior captain setter Kayla Lawler (Louisville, Ky.) headlines the
returning core for the Bobcats this season. Lawler narrowly missed
1,000 assists last season, finishing with 992. She’s amassed
nearly 3,000 career assists, and was named Quinnipiac’s first
NEC Player of the Week in nearly nine years after leading the
Bobcats to a weekend sweep of Robert Morris and Saint Francis
(Pa.).
Senior outside hitter Kelby Carey (Surfside, Calif.) also returns with 1,000 career kills and digs both within reach. She enters the season with 788 kills and 852 digs through her first three seasons.
Junior libero Logan Riker (Bowling Green, Ohio) returns for a third season, having built a reputation as a versatile contributor. She’s racked up 829 digs in her two seasons at Quinnipiac, compiling at least 400 in each of her first two years. She was asked to hit outside on a few occasions last seasons and filled in admirably with two 10-kill efforts.
NEC Preseason Poll
1) Sacred Heart (7)
2) Robert Morris (1)
3) Central Connecticut State (1)
4) Long Island
5) Saint Francis (Pa.)
6) Bryant
Fairleigh
Dickinson
8) Quinnipiac
9) St. Francis (N.Y.)
*First-place votes in parentheses
