[Release from Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference]
Mount Mary University was selected fifth in the 2021 Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference Women's Volleyball Preseason Poll, following a vote among the conference head coaches. The Blue Angels collected 20 points, tying Pratt Institute (N.Y.) for that fifth position, behind defending Capital Athletic Conference champion Christopher Newport.
Mary Washington earned 39 points to finish second, while Salisbury posted 37 points and two first-place tallies to sit third in the rankings. UC Santa Cruz garnered the final first-place vote and 36 points to sit close behind in fourth place.
Mills landed in seventh place just behind MMU and Pratt with 18 points, while Finlandia rounded out the poll in eighth with eight points.
The 2021 season kicks off the first week of September and the C2C Women's Volleyball Championship, a 6-team tournament, will be hosted by Mount Mary University in Milwaukee, Wis., November 5 & 6.
Below is a brief preview of each team entering the 2021 season:
#1 Christopher Newport: The Christopher Newport volleyball program has advanced to 13 consecutive NCAA Tournaments under the direction of head coach Lindsay Birch and will look to make the program's first trip under the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference banner. Conference Rookie and Player of the Year Sammy Carroll is set to lead the way again in 2021 after an eye-popping first year in 2019. Carroll became just the second player in program history to garner both awards after leading the league in assists per set at 9.78 and ranking 25th nationally in total assists. On the back line, veteran Rebecca Frey returns after posting the fifth-most digs in the conference during the 2019 campaign. On attack, CNU will look to rebuild with Mackenzie Wright the only returner with more than 100 kills the last time the Captains played a full season.
#2 Mary Washington: Third year Mary Washington head coach Alex Hinsey will look to 2021 with a young squad that includes 17 new players added to a roster that has competed in the conference championship match in each of the past five seasons. Seniors Abby Wiles, Olivia Casey, and Aidan Finegan will lead the young squad through another challenging nonconference schedule.
#3 Salisbury: Salisbury charges into the fall 2021 season by returning all of its key performers from the spring exhibition season. Outside hitter Amanda Chew returns to the court after a First-Team All-Conference campaign in 2019 in which she led the league in kills (414, 3.70 per set) and ranked top-12 in digs (270, 2.41 per set). Fellow outside Chloe Adam ranked inside the top six in kills (316) and kills per set (2.82), while middle blocker Jenna Feinauer finished second in the league in blocks (96, 0.93 per set) and earned a conference All-Tournament Team nod. The Sea Gulls went 18-11 in 2019, including 5-5 in league play, and advanced to the tournament semifinals before bowing to Mary Washington.
#4 UC Santa Cruz: Super Senior Claire Okerlund returns to boost the Banana Slugs offense. Maiya Sears and Bella Hoglund return to give UC Santa Cruz power at the pins and Sinead Beaupain looks to continue her great work at setter. Twelve freshmen and sophomores look to contribute in their on-court debuts.
#5-tie Pratt: The Pratt Institute's women's volleyball team will be led by Louis Sepulveda, who will be entering his fifth season as head coach. The Cannoneers are coming off a 20-win season in 2019, the most in program history. After finishing runner up in the ACAA Championships in 2019, Pratt will look to continue its success in its first season in the C2C. Pratt will be returning 11 players from the 2019 squad while adding seven newcomers.
#5-tie Mount Mary: Mount Mary University returns to action this fall looking to build off a 6-23 campaign back in 2019, having been idle for the full 2020-21 athletic seasons. Fourth-year head coach Natalie Balleto welcomes some key components from that squad with seven returning letter winners, led by All-ACAA Second Team honoree Brianna Ecker. Ecker finished second on the team in kills (1.68) and points (2.40) per set, while leading the team with 3.55 assists and 59 total service aces back in 2019. Jacklyn Mozdzen and Emma Carufel combined for just over 2.20 kills per set, while Mozdzen and Lauren Nylund tallied 2.70 and 1.88 digs per set respectively.
#7 Mills: Throughout the COVID season, the Cyclones were determined to stay connected, despite there being no opportunity to play or even meet in person. Because of that determination, there are six returning student athletes; including two graduate students that will bring their experience and leadership to the court. Along with three new incoming student athletes, the Cyclones have a new head coach, Laura Cartwright.
#8 Finlandia: New is the word of the day for the Finlandia University volleyball team in 2019. The Lions have six players who will be making their collegiate debuts. Leading the charge for the Lions will be seniors Briana Portice and Taylor Talerico. The other players with experience are junior Ella Lindgren and senior Malone Hiebert. Among the newcomers, Emma DeKeiweit (Castleford, Idaho) is expected to make an impact.
