Volleyball

SJC Volleyball Picked to Finish Eighth in GNAC Preseason Poll

SJC Volleyball Picked to Finish Eighth in GNAC Preseason Poll
Posted: Aug 19, 2021

WINTHROP, Mass. – Seeking its sixth consecutive league title this fall, Johnson & Wales University (RI) took home all 14 first-place votes as the unanimous frontrunner atop the 2021 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Volleyball Preseason Poll, as voted upon by the league's head coaches.

Saint Joseph's received 109 points and is picked to finish eighth this fall. The new-look Monks return several key players from a 2019 squad that went 5-7 in GNAC play en route to earning the #8 seed in the conference tournament, including seniors Sarah Quinn (Dover, N.H.), Olivia Kent (Ellington, Conn.), and Nicole Baron (Derry, N.H.) and junior setter Hanna Holden (Stoughton, Mass.). Quinn, Kent and Baron surpassed the 100-kill mark in 2019 while Holden ranked among the GNAC leaders in assists as a freshman.

The Monks open the 2021 season with a non-conference match at Husson University (7:00 PM) on Wednesday, September 1st and begin conference play when they play host to Albertus Magnus College (3:00 PM) on Saturday, September 25th.

Under head coach Nancy Somera, who took over the helms of the program in 2014, JWU is 65-5 in GNAC play and went 7-3 in NCAA Tournament play from 2017-19, including an Elite Eight appearance in 2017. Winners of five straight GNAC Championships, the Wildcats will finally return to the court for the JWU Invitational on Friday, September 3 against Clark and Union, after a scrimmage at Division-II Bentley on Saturday, August 28.

Longtime GNAC powerhouse Rivier University finished second in the poll with 177 points, followed by Simmons University with 166 points. Later this season, JWU will host Rivier on Wednesday, October 20 and travel to Simmons on Saturday, October 30.

Rivier has captured six GNAC titles in program history, most recently in 2014, while Simmons advanced to the GNAC title match against JWU in 2017 and made the conference semifinals in 2018.

Making up the rest of the top-10 in the poll were Norwich University (137 points), Lasell University (136), Colby-Sawyer College (113), Regis College (111), Saint Joseph's College of Maine (109), Emmanuel College (80), and newest full core member Elms College (76).

For the complete poll results, please see below.

The 2021 GNAC Tournament will take place November 2, 4, and 6 (Tues-Thurs-Sat) with the league champion receiving an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament.

2021 GNAC Women's Volleyball Preseason Poll
1. Johnson & Wales (14) - 196
2. Rivier - 177
3. Simmons - 166
4. Norwich - 137
5. Lasell - 136
6. Colby-Sawyer - 113
7. Regis - 111
8. Saint Joseph's Maine - 109
9. Emmanuel - 80
10. Elms - 76
11. USJ - 66
12. Albertus Magnus - 48
13. Dean - 28
14. Anna Maria - 27 

 

THANKS IN LARGE PART TO GNAC SPORTS INFORMATION OFFICE

 

#GOMONKS

 

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Founded in 1912 by the Sisters of Mercy in Portland, Maine, Saint Joseph’s College is Maine’s Catholic liberal arts college in the Mercy tradition. We are inclusive of all faiths, including no faith. The 474-acre campus, located on the shore of Sebago Lake in Standish, Maine offers more than 40 undergraduate programs and a Division III athletic program to a population of approximately 1,000 on-campus students. A pioneer of distance education since the 1970s, the College also provides online certificates and undergraduate and graduate degrees for thousands more working adults who reside in more than 20 other countries. In 2015 the College was selected by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching to receive its Community Engagement Classification, highlighting the College’s focus on community service throughout its mission and daily interactions within local, regional, and global communities. In 2018, Princeton Review recognized SJC as one of its “Green Colleges” for its sustainability initiatives. Learn more at www.sjcme.edu.

 

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