August 21, 2008
LE MOYNE VOLLEYBALL SELECTED EIGHTH IN NORTHEAST-10
CONFERENCE PRESEASON POLL
South Easton, Mass. – The Le Moyne College volleyball team
has been selected to finish eighth in the Northeast-10 Conference
standings, as voted on by the league’s 15 head coaches.
Bentley College, which finished second in the regular season one
year ago, was picked to win the league title after receiving 12 of
the possible 15 first-place votes for 221 total points, as
announced by the conference on Thursday, Aug. 21.
Conference newcomer New Haven was tabbed first on two ballots en
route to being selected second in the poll with 201 points.
Merrimack picked up 196 points to grab the third spot in the poll,
while Franklin Pierce collected 173 points to claim fourth. Pace,
which received the final first-place vote, rounds out the top-five
with 147 points.
Saint Rose tallied 144 points to start off spots six through ten.
UMass Lowell registered 135 points to nip Le Moyne for the seventh
spot in the standings. The Dolphins, who finished the season 13-18
last year, were two points behind in eighth with 133. Stonehill
edged by Southern New Hampshire for ninth place with 102 points,
while the Penmen garnered 101. Assumption (77), Southern
Connecticut (61), American International (56), Saint
Michael’s (30), and Saint Anselm (23) were selected to close
out the standings.
Le Moyne returns 10 letterwinners, including all six starters,
from last year’s squad that advanced to the conference
tournament for the fourth consecutive season. The Le Moyne attack
is led by two-time all-conference selection Elizabeth Cheek and
senior Jodi Smith. Cheek, a second-team selection last season after
being named to the third-team as a freshman, set a single-season
program record with 438 kills, while also recording a team-high 397
digs. Smith, one of three seniors on this year’s team,
tallied 281 digs and 280 kills last season. Le Moyne’s front
line is led by senior middle hitter Caitlin Richardson and
sophomore Krista Prentice. Richardson, who appeared in 113 of 115
games played as a junior, landed 213 kills and had a team-high 71
total blocks. Prentice, who played in all 115 games last year,
registered 316 kills, 271 digs and 67 total blocks.
The Dolphins open the regular season on Friday, Aug. 28 against
West Chester at 3 p.m. as part of Wilmington’s Wildcat
Invitational. The Northeast-10 tournament, hosted by Pace, will
begin on Friday, Nov. 14. The semifinals and finals will take place
on Saturday, Nov. 15.
-agate-
1. Bentley (12) 221, 2. New Haven (2) 201, 3. Merrimack 196, 4.
Franklin Pierce 173, 5. Pace (1) 147, 6. Saint Rose 144, 7. UMass
Lowell 135, 8. Le Moyne 133, 9. Stonehill 102, 10. Southern New
Hampshire 101, 11. Assumption 77, 12. Southern Connecticut 61, 13.
American International 56, 14. Saint Michael’s 30, 15. Saint
Anselm 23,
(First Place Votes In Parentheses)
