Titans Voted Third In WIAC Preseason Women's Volleyball Poll
The UW-Oshkosh women's volleyball team is predicted to finish third in the race for the 2018 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) championship, according to a preseason poll conducted by the league's eight head coaches and sports information directors.
UW-Oshkosh, entering the season under second-year head coach Jon Ellmann, returns 11 of 15 letter winners from a 2017 team that compiled a 20-15 record and finished fifth in the WIAC standings with a 3-4 mark. The Titans shared the 2016 WIAC title with UW-La Crosse and UW-Whitewater and the 2015 league crown with UW-La Crosse.
UW-Oshkosh has five of its seven starters back from a year ago, including senior Tina Elstner and junior Samantha Jaeke who both received All-WIAC First Team accolades the past two seasons. Joining Elstner and Jaeke as returning starters are senior Carly Lemke, who obtained All-WIAC Honorable Mention recognition in 2016, sophomore Shelby Coron and junior Rachel Gardner.
Elstner, an outside hitter, led the WIAC with 47 services aces last season while listing third in the league with 391 kills and 18th in hitting percentage (.208). She recorded 10 double-doubles in 2017, including a season-high 26 kills with 14 digs during a 3-2 win over UW-River Falls.
Jaeke, a right-side/outside hitter, compiled 11 double-doubles and four triple-doubles last season while ranking 20th in the WIAC with a .202 hitting percentage. She counted a team-leading 547 assists while listing second on the squad with 275 kills. Jaeke amassed 12 kills, 22 assists and 10 digs during last year's 3-1 win over St. Norbert College.
UW-Whitewater was selected to win this season's WIAC championship. The Warhawks return 18 of 21 letter winners, including WIAC Defensive Player of the Year Brittany Robinson, from last year's squad that posted a 22-8 record and finished third in the WIAC standings with a 5-2 mark. UW-Whitewater, a 16-time WIAC champion, welcomes back five starters from 2017.
Sandwiched between UW-Whitewater and UW-Oshkosh in the preseason listings was projected second-place finisher UW-Eau Claire. The five-time WIAC champion Blugolds return 10 of 16 letter winners, including five starters, from a 2017 team that tallied a 17-11 record and placed second in the WIAC with a 6-1 mark.
Completing the league's preseason poll were defending champion and fourth-place UW-La Crosse (22-7 overall, 7-0 WIAC record in 2017), fifth-place UW-Stevens Point (24-10, 4-3), sixth-place UW-Stout (9-20, 2-5), seventh-place UW-Platteville (15-14, 1-6) and eighth-place UW-River Falls (19-15, 0-7). UW-La Crosse captured its 12th WIAC title last season while advancing to the second round of the NCAA Division III Championship.
UW-Eau Claire, UW-La Crosse, UW-Oshkosh and UW-Whitewater were all listed among the Others Receiving Votes category in the American Volleyball Coaches Association's (AVCA) NCAA Division III Preseason Poll released earlier this week.
UW-Oshkosh will host three WIAC opponents this fall – UW-Eau Claire on Sept. 28, UW-Stevens Point on Oct. 10 and UW-Platteville on Oct. 24.
The 13-time WIAC champion Titans open league play at UW-La Crosse on Sept. 19. Other conference road matches for UW-Oshkosh are against UW-Whitewater on Sept. 26, UW-River Falls on Oct. 12 and UW-Stout on Oct. 27.
UW-Oshkosh, which has recorded 26-plus wins 11 times during the past 18 seasons, begins practice for its 2018 season on Saturday (Aug. 18).