UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) announced the 2024 Volleyball Preseason Poll on Thursday (August 22) afternoon.
The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball program placed tenth of 11 teams in the preseason poll. SVSU earned 18 points to sit four points ahead of Roosevelt in the 11 spot. Ferris State took first with 97 points and seven first place votes. Grand Valley placed second with 94 (4). Michigan Tech and Parkside were third and fourth with 79 and 71 points respectively. Northern Michigan is fifth with 67 as Wayne State, Davenport, and Purdue Northwest have 48, 46, and 44 points. Lake Superior State rounds out the final team as they are ahead of the Cardinals with 27 points.
The Cardinals went 5-24 in 2023 with a 2-16 conference record and missed the GLIAC postseason. However, the team has a new energy around them with the newest edition to the Cardinal athletic staff, Lana Rybkowski. Rybkowski was named the new head coach of the volleyball team on August 2. She comes from Northwood University where she spent seven years as an assistant coach.
SVSU volleyball returns seven seniors and four juniors to fill out 11 of the 19 roster spots. Three sophomores and one redshirt-freshman also return and are joined by four new freshman faces.
Sarah Veale enters her senior season and was second on the team in kills in 2023 with 151. Cola Sisk, Sedona Coon, and Makaylah Roberts all had triple-digit kills as well with Sisk being a sophomore in 2024 and the other two joining Veale as seniors. Veale also was second on the team in digs with 207 and is joined by Elizabeth Bruschuk, Coon, Natalie Siler, and Ava Beard in the triple-digit club. Siler another senior while Bruschuk enters her junior year. Bruschuk and Beard led the team in aces with 27 and 22. As a freshman, Beard was second in assists with 412, just 23 behind the team lead.
The team starts with seven non-conference matches as they head to Cedarville, Ohio for three matches the first weekend of September and then four matches in Allendale, Michigan the following weekend, including a matchup against rival Northwood for the Grand Valley/Davenport Invitational. GLIAC play starts on the road at Lake Superior State on September 19 before the Cardinals come home to host GLIAC newcomer Roosevelt on Saturday, September 21 for their first home match. SVSU will also host Wayne State, Grand Valley, Parkside, Purdue Northwest, Lake Superior State, Michigan Tech, and Northern Michigan in 2024. The Cardinals will have their only matches against Davenport and Ferris State on the road this year. Conference play will be split up when Saginaw Valley heads to the Midwest Regional Crossover on October 18 and 19. Opponents have yet to be determined.