Volleyball Tabbed Tenth in GNAC Preseason Poll
WINTHROP, Mass. – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) women's volleyball team was picked to finish 10th in the 2024 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Preseason Coaches' Poll, it was announced Friday afternoon by the conference front office. The annual poll is voted upon by the league's 16 head coaches. The Blue Jays are set to open up the 2024 season on the road on Friday, August 30, at intrastate non-conference foe Eastern Connecticut State University. First serve between the Blue Jays and Warriors in Willimantic, Conn., is slated for 7:00 p.m.
The reigning GNAC champions Lasell University were selected to repeat in 2024, garnering 243 poll points and nine of the 16 available first-place tallies. Last year's runner-up, Regis College were tabbed second after receiving 233 poll points and three first-place votes. Johnson & Wales University were slotted behind the Pride, garnering 221 points and one first-place tally, while Simmons University rounded out the top four, receiving 217 poll points and the final three first-place votes.
Rivier University were selected to finish fifth in the Preseason Poll with 189 points, followed by Saint Joseph's College of Maine in sixth with 184 points, Emmanuel College in seventh with 168 points, New England College in eighth with 130 points and Colby-Sayer College in ninth with 108 points. The Blue Jays round out the top-10, slotting in at the 10 spot with 107 poll points.
Under the direction of fourth-year head coach Sheila Gisbrecht, the Blue Jays are looking to return to the GNAC playoffs for the second consecutive year. Last season, USJ made the postseason for the first time since 2014, earning the ninth-seed and defeating New England College in the opening round, marking the first postseason victory for the program since 2000.
Emmanuel College was predicted to finish sixth with 134 poll points, while also receiving the final first-place tally. New England College tallied 133 points to claim the seventh spot and was selected to finish ahead of eighth-place Dean College who had 121 points, ninth-place Regis College, who earned 109 points and 10th-place Rivier University with 90 points.
Rounding out the final six slots on the 2024 GNAC Women's Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll were Dean College in 11th with 88 points, followed by Mitchell College in 12th with 84 points, Norwich University in 13th with 68 points, Elms College in 14th with 58 points, Albertus Magnus College in 15th with 52 points and Anna Maria College in 16th with 26 points.
The top-ten teams in the league standings advance to the 2024 GNAC Tournament, which is set to begin with the first round on Monday, November 11, with the seventh and eighth seeds serving as hosts, followed by the quarterfinals on Tuesday, November 12 at the sites of the top-four seeds. The semifinals will be held on Thursday, November 14 by the remaining two highest seeds, followed by the championship match on Saturday, November 16 by the highest remaining seed, with the winner claiming the title of GNAC Champion and earning the league's automatic qualifier into the 2024 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship.
Admission to all USJ regular-season women's volleyball matches in 2024 is free of charge. Fans who cannot make it to games in person can watch all of the action live or on demand by visiting https://portal.stretchinternet.com/usj/.
For the complete poll results, please see below.
2024 GNAC Women's Volleyball Preseason Poll
| 1. | Lasell | 243 (9) |
| 2. | Regis | 233 (3) |
| 3. | Johnson & Wales | 221 (1) |
| 4. | Simmons | 217 (3) |
| 5. | Rivier | 189 |
| 6. | Saint Joseph's (Maine) | 184 |
| 7. | Emmanuel | 168 |
| 8. | New England College | 130 |
| 9. | Colby-Sawyer | 108 |
| 10. | University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) | 107 |
| 11. | Dean | 88 |
| 12. | Mitchell | 84 |
| 13. | Norwich | 68 |
| 14. | Elms | 58 |
| 15. | Albertus Magnus | 52 |
| 16. | Anna Maria | 26 |
About the GNAC
The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 16 member institutions and over 4,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 21 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.
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