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Volleyball Picked To Win MAC West, Goodsel Earns Preseason All-MAC Honors
August 22, 2017 | Women's Volleyball
CLEVELAND, Ohio - - The Ball State women's volleyball team was picked as the favorite to win the Mid-American Conference West Division as voted on by the league's 12 head coaches in the annual preseason poll.
In addition, junior outside hitter Brooklyn Goodsel (Corry Pa./Corry Area) was named to the six-member Preseason All-MAC West Division Team.
As a team, the Cardinals received four votes to win the MAC West Division, which is one more than both Northern Illinois and Western Michigan who were selected second and third, respectively. Toledo was picked fourth in the division and earned two first-place votes, while Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan rounded out the MAC West.
"While I am excited we were picked first in the MAC West Division, preseason polls don't determine who wins or loses at the end of the year," second-year head coach Kelli Miller said. "We have high expectations for ourselves entering the season, and this shows others in our league do as well. We will use this as motivation to push ourselves to be better, because you want to be at the top of the standings at the end of the year, not just the beginning. We are going to set our goals high and work every day to make sure we are playing our best at the end of the season."
Ball State also received one vote to claim the 2017 MAC Regular Season Championship and one vote to win the 2017 MAC Volleyball Tournament.
Miami was picked to win the MAC East Division with 11 of the 12 first-place votes, and also received 10 votes to win the regular season title and eight votes to win the tournament championship.
Goodsel earned the nod on the Preseason All-MAC West Division team after leading the Ball State offense and ranked ninth in the MAC with a 2.96 kills-per-set average last season. A First Team All-MAC selection in 2016, Goodsel blasted double digit kills in a team-high 19 matches, including a career-high 21 kills versus Toledo (Sept. 29). She led the Ball State offense in kills 13 times last season, while scoring at least four kills in 30 of the 31 matches she played.
"I am proud of Brooklyn for being named to the Preseason All-MAC Team," Miller said. "She earned that respect with a great sophomore year. I expect her to come out and lead our team again offensively this year, as well as be a stable backcourt passing presence for us. Regardless of any honors she earns this season, Brooklyn is going to stay level headed and work hard to be her best every time out."
On defense, Goodsel collected double digit digs in 13 matches, including a career-high 19 versus Kent State (Oct. 14). She finished her sophomore campaign with eight kill/dig double-doubles and earned at least five digs in 22 matches. She also collected 52 total blocks and serve up 17 aces last season.
The Ball State women's volleyball team opens the 2017 season Friday at 7 p.m. when it travels to Bloomington to take on Indiana in its opening match of the Indiana Invitational. The Cardinals close out the two-day event Saturday with matches versus Indiana State (10 a.m.) and DePaul (5 p.m.).
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @VBCoachMiller on Twitter.
2017 MAC Preseason Volleyball Poll
East Division
1. Miami (11) - 71
2. Ohio (1) - 58
3. Kent State - 49
4. Buffalo - 31
5. Bowling Green - 29
6. Akron - 14
West Division
1. Ball State (4) - 61
2. Northern Illinois (3) - 57
3. Western Michigan (3) - 50
4. Toledo (2) - 46
5. Central Michigan - 26
6. Eastern Michigan - 12
Regular Season Champions: Miami (10), Ball State (1), Western Michigan (1)
Tournament Champions: Miami (8), Ball State (1), Kent State (1), Ohio (1), Western Michigan (1)
Preseason All-MAC East Division Team
Cassie Shado, Buffalo
Kelsey Bittinger, Kent State
Challen Geraghty, Kent State
Maeve McDonald, Miami
Katie Tomasic, Miami
Jaime Kosiorek, Ohio
Ali Lake, Ohio
Preseason All-MAC West Division Team
Brooklyn Goodsel, Ball State
Jordan Bueter, Central Michigan
Meg Wolowicz, Northern Illinois
Maurissa Leonard, Toledo
Rachel Vidourek, Toledo
Sydney LeMay, Western Michigan
In addition, junior outside hitter Brooklyn Goodsel (Corry Pa./Corry Area) was named to the six-member Preseason All-MAC West Division Team.
As a team, the Cardinals received four votes to win the MAC West Division, which is one more than both Northern Illinois and Western Michigan who were selected second and third, respectively. Toledo was picked fourth in the division and earned two first-place votes, while Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan rounded out the MAC West.
"While I am excited we were picked first in the MAC West Division, preseason polls don't determine who wins or loses at the end of the year," second-year head coach Kelli Miller said. "We have high expectations for ourselves entering the season, and this shows others in our league do as well. We will use this as motivation to push ourselves to be better, because you want to be at the top of the standings at the end of the year, not just the beginning. We are going to set our goals high and work every day to make sure we are playing our best at the end of the season."
Ball State also received one vote to claim the 2017 MAC Regular Season Championship and one vote to win the 2017 MAC Volleyball Tournament.
Miami was picked to win the MAC East Division with 11 of the 12 first-place votes, and also received 10 votes to win the regular season title and eight votes to win the tournament championship.
Goodsel earned the nod on the Preseason All-MAC West Division team after leading the Ball State offense and ranked ninth in the MAC with a 2.96 kills-per-set average last season. A First Team All-MAC selection in 2016, Goodsel blasted double digit kills in a team-high 19 matches, including a career-high 21 kills versus Toledo (Sept. 29). She led the Ball State offense in kills 13 times last season, while scoring at least four kills in 30 of the 31 matches she played.
"I am proud of Brooklyn for being named to the Preseason All-MAC Team," Miller said. "She earned that respect with a great sophomore year. I expect her to come out and lead our team again offensively this year, as well as be a stable backcourt passing presence for us. Regardless of any honors she earns this season, Brooklyn is going to stay level headed and work hard to be her best every time out."
On defense, Goodsel collected double digit digs in 13 matches, including a career-high 19 versus Kent State (Oct. 14). She finished her sophomore campaign with eight kill/dig double-doubles and earned at least five digs in 22 matches. She also collected 52 total blocks and serve up 17 aces last season.
The Ball State women's volleyball team opens the 2017 season Friday at 7 p.m. when it travels to Bloomington to take on Indiana in its opening match of the Indiana Invitational. The Cardinals close out the two-day event Saturday with matches versus Indiana State (10 a.m.) and DePaul (5 p.m.).
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @VBCoachMiller on Twitter.
2017 MAC Preseason Volleyball Poll
East Division
1. Miami (11) - 71
2. Ohio (1) - 58
3. Kent State - 49
4. Buffalo - 31
5. Bowling Green - 29
6. Akron - 14
West Division
1. Ball State (4) - 61
2. Northern Illinois (3) - 57
3. Western Michigan (3) - 50
4. Toledo (2) - 46
5. Central Michigan - 26
6. Eastern Michigan - 12
Regular Season Champions: Miami (10), Ball State (1), Western Michigan (1)
Tournament Champions: Miami (8), Ball State (1), Kent State (1), Ohio (1), Western Michigan (1)
Preseason All-MAC East Division Team
Cassie Shado, Buffalo
Kelsey Bittinger, Kent State
Challen Geraghty, Kent State
Maeve McDonald, Miami
Katie Tomasic, Miami
Jaime Kosiorek, Ohio
Ali Lake, Ohio
Preseason All-MAC West Division Team
Brooklyn Goodsel, Ball State
Jordan Bueter, Central Michigan
Meg Wolowicz, Northern Illinois
Maurissa Leonard, Toledo
Rachel Vidourek, Toledo
Sydney LeMay, Western Michigan
Players Mentioned
OH/OPP
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