#4 VOLLEYCARDS ATOP ACC PRESEASON POLL
When you're coming off the kind of season that Louisville Volleyball had in 2021, and returning a lot of the student-athletes that made it possible, it should come as no surprise to anyone that the VolleyCards are atop the preseason ACC rankings and #4 in the nation.
The league's 15 head coaches saw it this way: 10 of them picked Louisville as the top team, while 5 of them voted Pittsburgh as preseason #1 in the conference. Louisville, who returns all but two starters from the 2021 squad, received 191 total votes, while Pitt received 185 votes.
The complete poll (by total votes received):
- #1 Louisville 191
- #2 Pittsburgh 185
- #3 Georgia Tech 173
- #4 Miami 150
- #5 Florida State 145
- #6 North Carolina 134
- #7 NC State 116
- #8 Duke 105
- #9 Notre Dame 87
- #10 Clemson 72
- #11 Wake Forest 63
- #12 Va. Tech 48
- #13 Boston College 39
- #14 Virginia 36
- #15 Syracuse 31
The ACC also selected five Louisville volleyballers to the ALL-ACC team Claire Chausee, Anna DeBeer, Aiko Jones, Elena Scott and Amaya Tillman.
The ACC had Louisville at #4, Pitt at #6 and Georgia Tech at #9 crack the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) top 10.
The regular season begins this Friday with all 15 ACC teams in action. The Cards head to South Dakota to face Northern Kentucky University, (That's a long way go to for an NKU match...why didn't they just agree to meet halfway geographically and play in Carrollton, KY)?
The word we're getting is that the host school (South Dakota) will be showing all the matches at their sports website
goyotes.com
Whether it's a pay--per-view or premium package sort of deal, we don't know yet. UofL will also play South Dakota and Missouri while in Vermillion. And, Sydni Schetnan is from South Dakota, so there should be a sizable Cards cheering contingent in the arena.
The guys we had at the Red vs. Black scrimmage (Jeff and Jared) have rave reviews for this 2022 squad. The graduation of two starters (Dilfer and Stevenson) doesn't seem to be a "program wrecker" or something that puts UofL in a rebuilding mode There are plenty of backups from last year and a few freshmen who are ready and capable of competing for those two spots. .
We look forward to a fun season with plenty of wins.
FIELD HOCKEY #9 IN PRESEASON VOTING
The NFHCA has released their preseason rankings and Justine Sowry's Cards are ranked #9 in the poll. Louisville is one of two ACC schools in the top 10, the other is North Carolina, who landed in the #2 spot
The complete top 10:
- #1 Northwestern 1107
- #2 North Carolina 1067
- #3 Michigan 967
- #4 Maryland 961
- #5 Iowa 930
- #6 Liberty 861
- #7 Harvard 837
- #8 Rutgers 768
- #9 LOUISVILLE 764
- #10 Syracuse 758
Penn State, who Louisville faces August 28th in University Park, PA , is #11 in the poll.
The Cards are gaining a fair amount of respect nationwide, but the ACC Coaches aren't as convinced...putting Louisville fifth out of the seven schools that play Field Hockey. UNC gathered first place recognition, followed by Syracuse, Boston College and Virginia. Duke and Wake Forest round out the voting and list. All seven ACC schools are in the NFHCA Top 20.
Aimee Plumb is the only Cardinals players to get preseason All-ACC recognition...the junior from Canterbury, Kent ,England was named to the squad last year. too.
Consecutive 2-1 preseason wins over MAC opponents may have not convinced the rest of the league that Louisville is a powerhouse, although it should be mentioned that Miami (OH) was ranked #24 in the poll and the Cards won up there.
We look forward to Field Hockey's pursuits this season and feel that this team has a adequate number of veterans returning and the freshmen will grow up fast as this very competitive schedule unfolds.
paulie
Hello Friends!
ReplyDeleteArthur Here!
I thought my Tigers might be a bit more respected in ACC Volleyball, but I guess not. That Louisville team looks so deep and strong, from what I reading lately. . Nice touch, Paulie, on the Carrollton site suggestion for Volleyball. I've said for years that Clemson and South Carolina should play their games against each other at Myrtle Beach.
Your Friend
#1 Clemson Fan
Arthur
Greer, SC
Hope that Field Hockey can maintain that top 10. Penn State isn't going to be an easy one up there and Bucknell coupld surprise Cards.
ReplyDeleteNick O