Preseason polls are in for SoCon volleyball and Furman sits atop the rankings. However, the Paladins will have to fight back in the regular season rankings after dropping two games at the Pepsi Panthers Invitational in Milwaukee, W.I.
A quick, three-set game (27-25, 25-23, 25-20) versus Missouri State, though tightly contested each set, gave the Paladins an opening loss in the tournament last Friday. Junior outside hitter Annie Bierman led the Paladins with 14.0 points total.
Saturday began with a five-set loss to University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (25-18, 23-25, 25-17, 25-11, 12-15), but ended with a strong 3-1 win over over Western Michigan (25-22, 17-25, 25-20, 25-21). Sophomore libero Meg DeMaar had a strong defensive performance against Western Michigan with 20 digs.
The tournament comes after the Paladins were given top SoCon preseason honors alongside with Samford, who beat Furman 3-1 to claim the SoCon Volleyball Championship last year. Furman finished the 2014 season with a 23-7 (14-2 SoCon) record last season to clinch their third regular season championship.
Three Furman players were also named to the preseason all-conference team, the most of any team in the SoCon. Senior setter Jo Wilks received the honor for the third time, going into the year as fifth on the Furman career assists list at 4,010. She joins Bierman, who tallied 546 kills and 619 digs in her first two seasons, and DeMaar, who finished her freshman year with 499 digs, placing her at fourth all-time on the Furman single-season digs records. Both Bierman and DeMaar are first time recipients.
The Paladins are not without obstacles this season, however. They will have to find a way to fill the blocking gap left by the transfer of former Furman standout Ashton Gregory to Appalachian State over the summer. Gregory was named SoCon Player of the Year and All-American Honorable Mention last season, tallying 53 solo blocks to capture runner-up in NCAA Division I solo blocks last season.
The Paladins with host the Carolina Classic at Alley Gymnasium Sept. 4-5, where they will face off against Winthrop University, University of South Carolina, and Clemson University. The first game begins Friday at 7 p.m. versus Winthrop.
Photo courtesy of Furman Athletics.
