SAN BRUNO, Calif. – The West Coast Conference released their 2018 Volleyball Preseason Poll Tuesday afternoon, with Portland placing 8
th in conference. After finishing at 15-15 (6-12 in WCC play) in 2017, Portland seeks to reenter the upper echelon of WCC Teams after a recent resurgence.
After extending its own conference record and marching to its sixth consecutive NCAA Sweet-16 berth, BYU was picked as the favorite to win the 2018 West Coast Conference Volleyball Championship in the annual preseason poll of the WCC's 10 coaches. The Cougars have won or shared five of the last six WCC titles including three straight.
For the second straight year, BYU was a unanimous selection to win the conference title, earning 81 points and a maximum nine first place votes. After marching to its eighth straight NCAA Tournament last season and sharing the 2017 championship with the Cougars, San Diego collected 73 points and the remaining first place vote for second place in the poll.
Loyola Marymount was tabbed third with 61 points, followed closely by PCH rival Pepperdine with 59. Gonzaga rounded out the top half of the predicted leaderboard with 46 votes. Santa Clara snared 42 points for sixth place followed by Saint Mary's (35), Portland (26), Pacific (16) and San Francisco (11).
BYU is one of two WCC programs appearing on the 2018 AVCA Preseason poll, checking in at No. 8. San Diego sits at No. 14. Last season both the Cougars (9) and the Toreros (13) were ranked in the final poll. BYU has cracked the top-15 in the last six final polls, while San Diego has appeared in the last two surveys.
All 10 West Coast Conference teams open the 2018 campaign Friday, August 24, including Portland who will play at CSU Bakersfield, in San Diego, Calif., at 2:00 pm.
The Pilots will compete in an exhibition match against Seattle this Saturday in Seattle, Wash., at 2:00 pm. This will be their first time playing an opponent in 2018.
| Team (First Place Vote) |
|
Pts. |
| 1. BYU |
(9) |
81 |
| 2. San Diego |
(1) |
73 |
| 3. Loyola Marymount |
|
61 |
| 4. Pepperdine |
|
59 |
| 5. Gonzaga |
|
46 |
| 6. Santa Clara |
|
42 |
| 7. Saint Mary's |
|
35 |
| 8. Portland |
|
26 |
| 9. Pacific |
|
16 |
| 10. San Francisco |
|
11 |
2018 All-WCC Preseason Volleyball Team
| Name |
Institution |
Yr. |
Pos. |
| Kaity Edwards |
San Diego |
Sr. |
MB |
| Kennedy Eschenberg |
BYU |
So. |
MB |
| Hannah Frohling |
Pepperdine |
Jr. |
OH |
| Lyndie Haddock-Eppich |
BYU |
Sr. |
S |
| Roni Jones-Perry |
BYU |
Sr. |
OH |
| Mary Lake |
BYU |
Jr. |
LIB |
| McKenna Miller |
BYU |
Jr. |
OH |
| Addie Picha |
San Diego |
Sr. |
MB |
| Megan Rice |
Loyola Marymount |
Jr. |
OH |
| Savannah Slattery |
Loyola Marymount |
Jr. |
OH |
