CENTER VALLEY, PA. (8/26/09) – After advancing to the league tournament finale in back-to-back years, the Colgate volleyball squad has been picked to finish second in the 2009 Patriot League Preseason Poll, it was announced Wednesday afternoon by the league office. The poll is voted on by the league head coaches and the media relations volleyball contact for each school.
While losing its all-time kill leader (Katrina Zawojski) and the Patriot League's dig leader (Jackie Adlam), Colgate returns five starters and 10 letterwinners off last year's 15-14 squad. Among the starters returning include senior Meghan Fanta (Hillsboro, Wisc.) and junior Casey Ritt (Colorado Springs, Colo.). Fanta enters 2009 season as the Raiders' all-time assist leader, while Ritt was a first team all-league selection last season.
The Raiders capped off the 2008 season by winning nine of their final 12 matches of the year, including upsetting second seed Army in a semifinal of the Patriot League Tournament. Colgate finished with a 9-5 league record, which was third in the regular season.
“This ranking says a great deal about how far this program has come in the past three years,” said head coach Ryan Baker, who enters his four year at the helm of the program. “We are returning five starters, so experience is certainly on our side. However, we still have a long season ahead of us and must continue to get better and stay healthy in order to achieve our goals. The recognition is exciting, but the end of the year standings are much more important to us.”
Defending champion American, which has a 109-3 record in the conference since joining the Patriot League eight seasons ago, tallied 12 of the 16 first place votes and was the distant league choice with 96 points. The Raiders (79) collected three first place votes and edged Army (78) by one point for second. Bucknell (65), Navy (49), Lehigh (34), Lafayette (31), and Holy Cross (16) rounded out the voting.
Colgate opens the 2009 season this Friday afternoon as it hosts Coppin State. The match is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start at Cotterell Court.
Patriot League Preseason Poll
1. American (12) 96
2. Colgate (3) 79
3. Army (1) 78
4. Bucknell 65
5. Navy 49
6. Lehigh 34
7. Lafayette 31
8. Holy Cross 16
