Volleyball Tabbed Second in Preseason NEC Coaches Poll

The Central Connecticut volleyball team received a first-place vote and was picked second in the Northeast Conference Preseason Coaches Poll released on Wednesday. The Blue Devils advanced to the semifinals of the Northeast Conference Tournament last season to face LIU Brooklyn, which was the preseason pick to win the league. 

OFFICIAL NORTHEAST CONFERENCE RELEASE

LIU Brooklyn claimed the other seven first-place votes and was picked by the league's coaches to win a fourth-straight league crown. Robert Morris was picked third and was followed by Saint Francis U., Bryant, Sacred Heart, Fairleigh Dickinson and St. Francis Brooklyn to round out the poll.

Head coach Linda Sagnelli will begin her 16th season at the helm and has led the CCSU program to 12 straight appearances in the Northeast Conference Tournament. Central returns an experienced squad, led by two-time First Team All-NEC selection Makenna Lommori.  Lommori ranked seventh in the conference in kills per set (3.02) and established a school-record last season with 35 kills in a match against Sacred Heart.

The Blue Devils also welcome back senior outside hitter Heather Trueman, who led the team with 3.24 kills per set in 2014, and classmate Ashley Lenington who had a team-high 514 assists. Junior Brooke Schwab started all 27 matches and ranked second on the team with 83 total blocks, while classmate Rachel Fish recorded a team-high 352 digs.

Central will host a pair of in-season tournaments this fall, including the season-opening Blue Devil Classic. The Blue Devils will open against Fairfield on Friday at 4 PM, before facing Bucknell and NJIT on Saturday, August 29. CCSU's opens Northeast Conference play at home against LIU Brooklyn on Saturday, September 26.

The 2015 NEC Championship will take place on November 21 and 22 at the campus of the top-seeded team. The top four finishers, based on conference winning percentage, will compete in a two-day, single-elimination tournament.