Defending Champion Siena, Picked as Preseason Favorite in MAAC Volleyball
MAAC Sports
EDISON, NJ – Defending Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) volleyball champion and 2015 MAAC Volleyball Championship host, Siena College, has been selected as the preseason favorite, as voted by the league’s ten head coaches. Siena earned 91 points with six first place votes, beating out Fairfield University and Manhattan College, which tied for second in the poll with 78 points.
Siena capped off the 2014 season with a 14-4 league record and a 19-15 overall mark, en route to its conference-best, ninth MAAC volleyball title. The Saints led the conference in total blocks (293.0), block assists (516), and blocks per set (2.42). Siena also placed four players on All-MAAC Teams and ranked third in the league in opponent hitting percentage and service aces per set in 2014.
The Marist duo of Amanda Schlegel and Courtney Shaw were voted as the 2015 MAAC Co-Preseason Players of the Year. Schlegel, a junior setter from Austin, Texas was the 2014 MAAC Setter of the Year. She finished the season as the league leader in total assists, dishing out 1,171, and assists per set, recording 10.55 per set. Shaw, a senior from Centennial, Colorado was a member of the All-MAAC First Team and selected to the MAAC All-Championship Team in 2014. She also ranked fourth in the conference with a .296 hitting percentage and led Marist with 316 kills after playing in all 112 sets for the Red Foxes last year.
Fairfield received two first place votes and Manhattan received one as both teams finished tied for second in the poll. The Stags finished the 2014 campaign with a 13-5 conference mark and 19-12 overall record. Fairfield ranked second in the league in assists and kills. The Stags Megan Theiller took home the MAAC Rookie of the Year honor and the team placed four players on All-MAAC Teams. Manhattan also finished with a 13-5 MAAC record and compiled a 21-13 overall mark in 2014. The Jaspers sat atop of the league in kills, kills per set, digs, and digs per set. Manhattan’s Malia McGuinness won the MAAC Player of the Year accolade in 2014 and was the lone Jasper named to the All-MAAC Team.
2014 regular season champion and MAAC Championship runner-up Marist College finished fourth in the poll receiving 71 points and the final first place vote, followed by Rider University receiving 61 points to round out the top half of the poll. Canisius College earned 54 points, followed by Niagara University which received 45 points and Iona College earning 32 points. Quinnipiac University picked up 28 points and Saint Peter’s University closed out the poll with 12 points.
Earning spots on the preseason All-MAAC team with Schlegel and Shaw are Canisius’ Lauren Siebert and unanimous choice Kaitlyn Griffin from Rider at middle hitter. At outside hitter are Canisius’ Rachel Kline, Fairfield’s Hadley Orr and Theiller, and Manhattan’s Claire Van Dyk. Allie Yamashiro of Manhattan is the Libero.
Preseason Coaches' Poll
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1.
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Siena
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91
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T2.
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Fairfield
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78
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T2.
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Manhattan
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78
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4.
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Marist
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71
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5.
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Rider
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61
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6.
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Canisius
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54
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7.
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Niagara
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45
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8.
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Iona
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32
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9.
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Quinnipiac
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28
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10.
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Saint Peter’s
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12
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Preseason All-MAAC Team
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Lauren Siebert
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Middle Hitter
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Canisius
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Kaitlyn Griffin*
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Middle Hitter
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Rider
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Rachel Kline
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Outside Hitter
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Canisius
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Hadley Orr
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Outside Hitter
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Fairfield
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Megan Theiller
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Outside Hitter
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Fairfield
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Claire Van Dyk
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Outside Hitter
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Manhattan
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Courtney Shaw
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Outside Hitter
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Marist
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Amanda Schlegel
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Setter
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Marist
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Allie Yamashiro
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Libero
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Manhattan
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*Unanimous selection to Preseason All-MAAC Team
Co-Preseason Players of the Year
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Amanda Schlegel
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Marist
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Courtney Shaw
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Marist
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