OFFICIAL USA SOUTH RELEASE LINK
BREVARD, N.C. – The USA South Conference has released its annual coaches poll for Volleyball, pegging the Brevard College volleyball team seventh in the tabulation.
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2021 USA South Volleyball Coaches Preseason Poll |
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Rank |
Institution (1st Place Votes) |
Pts. |
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1. |
Maryville^ (8) |
64 |
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2. |
Covenant |
51 |
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3. |
Berea (1) |
50 |
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4. |
Huntingdon |
49 |
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5. |
LaGrange |
32 |
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6. |
Piedmont |
29 |
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7. |
Brevard |
26 |
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8. |
Agnes Scott |
12 |
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9. |
Wesleyan |
11 |
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^Defending Division Champion |
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Maryville College, the defending USA South West Division Tournament champion, was picked to repeat on the west side, garnering eight first-place votes and 64 overall points in the poll. Covenant College followed in second with 51 points, while Berea College captured the remaining first-place vote and 50 points overall, followed close behind by fourth-place Huntingdon College (49 points).
LaGrange College (fifth, 32 points) and Piedmont University (sixth, 29 points) finished slightly ahead of the Tornados, as BC garnered 26 points in the poll. Agnes Scott College (eighth, 12 points) and Wesleyan College (ninth, 11 points) rounded out the poll.
BC comes into the Fall season after a competitive Spring 2021 campaign that saw the Tornados earn their most wins in conference play since 2016. Several key returners come back to a squad featuring a total of 11 new faces.
Sophomore setter/right-side hitter Kaitlyn Pressley enjoyed a breakout freshman campaign a season ago. The local product from Brevard High School dished out a team-high 176 assists to go alongside 53 kills (third on team) and 70 digs (second on team). Pressley highlighted her season on March 17 when the Tornados defeated Piedmont, 3-1, putting together one of the few triple-doubles in the modern era with 16 kills, 17 assists, and 10 digs.
The Tornado front-line also returns sophomore outside hitter Makenna Parkins. The Marion, North Carolina native ranked second on last year's squad with 78 kills and 2.36 kills per set. BC's returning defense includes sophomore defensive specialist Caitlin Hagarty and senior defensive specialist Morgan Graham, who logged 94 and 51 digs respectively in the shortened Spring campaign.
The Tornados, led by seventh-year Head Coach Anna Grant and second-year Assistant Coach Kia Kaufman, begin their 2021 Fall season on Thursday, September 2 at the Boshamer Gymnasium vs. Emory & Henry College at 6 p.m.
To follow the latest news and updates surrounding Brevard College Athletics, follow the Tornados on Twitter and Instagram @bctornados, subscribe to 'Brevard College Tornados' on YouTube, follow 'Brevard College Tornados' on SoundCloud, and like 'Brevard College Athletics' on Facebook. In addition, follow 'brevardcollege' on Flickr for photos from Brevard College events.
-BC-