Ball State University Athletics
Women?s Volleyball Picked To Finish Third In MAC West
August 25, 2008 | Women's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - The Ball State women's volleyball team was selected to finish third in the Mid-American Conference West Division in the league's annual preseason poll, which was voted on by the conference's 12 head coaches and announced this morning.
The Cardinals enter the 2008 season with a roster featuring 10 newcomers and six returning players. Juniors Julie Breivogel (Boonville, Ind./Boonville H.S.) and Elaina Kakatolis (Arcanum, Ohio/Franklin Monroe) are BSU's only two returning starting attackers from the 2007 squad. Breivogel paced the BSU offense with a 2.83 kills-per-game average last season, while Kakatolis ranked second on the squad in kills (251) and third in total blocks (82).
Defensively, the Cardinals everyday libero from 2007 returns, as sophomore Alyssa Rio (Wayne, Ill./St. Francis H.S.) will look to build upon her team-leading 5.58 digs-per-game average, which ranked fourth in the league and 37th nationally last season.
2007 AVCA All-America Third Team honoree Alisha Green (Country Club Hills, Ill./Hillcrest H.S.) highlights BSU's list of 10 newcomers, which also includes a pair of top 100 recruits. Green, who helped guide the University of Tampa to a national championship in 2006, participated in the U.S. Women's National Volleyball Team open tryouts (Feb. 22-24, 2008) after joining the Ball State program in January.
Western Michigan, which captured its first MAC West Division Championship since 2000 last season, was picked to win the division for a second-straight year, followed by Central Michigan and Ball State. Behind the Cardinals were Northern Illinois, Eastern Michigan and Toledo.
Miami, the 2007 MAC Tournament Champions, was picked to win the league's East Division, followed by five-time defending MAC regular-season champion Ohio. Rounding out the East Division are Kent State, Bowling Green, Akron and Buffalo.
Miami, Western Michigan and Ohio each picked up three votes to win the 2008 MAC Tournament which begins Nov. 18 on campus sites and continues Nov. 21-23 at the SeaGate Centre in Toledo, Ohio.
The Ball State women's volleyball team officially opens the 2008 season Friday (Aug. 29) at the Sam Houston State Invitational with an 11:30 a.m. (CT) first serve versus Wisconsin-Green Bay.
