2024 NAC Women's Volleyball Tournament Preview
WATERVILLE, Maine – The 2024 North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Women’s Volleyball Tournament begins tonight with a West Division First Round match and concludes on Saturday, November 16th, when the top teams from the East and West Divisions face off in the NAC Championship, which will be hosted by the highest remaining seed from the West.
Perennial NAC contender Maine Maritime Academy has secured the #1 seed in the East Division and the right to host the first two rounds of the East Tournament, with a pair of quarterfinal matches this Saturday and a semifinal – or East Division title bout – on Sunday.
SUNY Delhi claimed the #1 seed in the West and has a bye in the first round before hosting the winner of tonight’s VTSU Johnson / SUNY Cobleskill match at 1:00 PM on Sunday, with the winner of that match securing a NAC Championship berth and the right to host the 2024 title contest on Saturday, November 16th.
The winner of the 2024 NAC Championship will secure the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA DIII Women’s Volleyball Tournament, set to begin on Thursday, November 21st. The complete NCAA Tournament bracket will be unveiled during a live selection show on NCAA.com on Monday, November 18th.
2024 NAC Women’s Volleyball Tournament Schedule:
Women: Top 4 in East, Top 3 in West
Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024
West First Round: #3 VTSU Johnson at #2 SUNY Cobleskill, 5:00 PM
Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024
East Quarterfinals: #1 Maine Maritime vs #4 Maine-Presque Isle, 1:00 PM; #2 Thomas vs #3 Husson at Maine Maritime, 3:00 PM
Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024
West Second Round: VTSU Johnson/SUNY Cobleskill winner at SUNY Delhi, 1:00 PM
East Semifinal: Maine Maritime/Maine-Presque Isle winner vs Thomas/Husson winner at Maine Maritime, 12:00 PM
Championship (hosted by WEST)
Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024
East Champion vs West Champion
EAST DIVISION:
#1 Maine Maritime Academy (8-0 NAC, 15-10 Overall)
Head Coach: Heather Benson (1st Season, 15-10 (15-14 Overall))
NAC Championships: (10) 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022
2023 NAC Tournament Results: Defeated UMPI in quarterfinal, 3-0; Defeated VTSU Johnson in semifinal, 3-0; Lost to Eastern Nazarene in championship, 3-2
Leaders:
Kills: #9 Sydney Williams (228), #7 Ally Hadley (177), #20 Ila Smith (176)
Hitting %: Smith (.415), Williams (.296)
Assists: #14 Katie Albritton (452), Hadley (284)
Service Aces: Hadley (62), #5 Grace Jennings (45)
Digs: #6 Hannah Tate (300), Hadley (169)
Blocks: Smith (33), #13 Chloe Weeks (28)
NOTES: The Mariners have focused on spreading the offense around this fall and feature four players with at least 120 kills…Smith currently ranks third in NCAA DIII in hitting percentage while Hadley is 21st nationally in services aces…Williams, the 2023 NAC Rookie of the Year, has been named as the NAC Player of the Week four times this fall while Tate has earned three Rookie of the Week honors.
#2 Thomas College (5-3 NAC, 6-13 Overall)
Head Coach: Tara Kelley (1st Season, 6-13)
NAC Championships: None
2023 NAC Tournament Results: N/A
Leaders:
Kills: #1 MJ Rose (146), #8 Elny Mendez (127)
Hitting %: #15 Sariah Putnam (.214), Rose (.210)
Assists: #3 Ana Romero (233)
Service Aces: #2 Halle Ham (48), Romero (32)
Digs: Ham (356), Mendez (223)
Blocks: Rose (52), Putnam (42)
NOTES: Thomas College is sponsoring women’s volleyball as an NCAA DIII sport this fall after a 15-year hiatus (2009)…Rose, a senior middle blocker who transferred to Thomas from UMaine-Fort Kent, has lived up to the hype this fall and ranks among the NAC leaders in hitting percentage (5th) and kills (9th)
#3 Husson University (4-4 NAC, 8-15 Overall)
Head Coach: Alex Gordon (3rd Season, 27-42)
NAC Championships: None (2x Runner-up)
2023 NAC Tournament Results: Lost to VTSU Johnson in quarterfinal, 3-2
Leaders:
Kills: #10 Janna Preskorn (228), #13 Cam Schweitzer (85)
Hitting %: Preskorn (.155), #12 Alexa Beal (.136)
Assists: #11 Alyvia McIntyre (492)
Service Aces: McIntyre (45), Preskorn (39)
Digs: #8 Beatrice Tursi (224), McIntyre (141)
Blocks: #4 Alana Peruti (34)
NOTES: The Eagles won a key five-set match at UMaine-Presque Isle last Saturday to clinch the #3 seed in the conference tournament…McIntyre leads the NAC in assists while Preskorn leads the conference in points (275) and is tied for second in kills.
#4 UMaine-Presque Isle (3-5 NAC, 9-15 Overall)
Head Coach: Jonathon Bowman (8th Season, 55-148)
NAC Championships: None
2023 NAC Tournament Results: Lost to Maine Maritime in quarterfinal, 3-0
Leaders:
Kills: #6 Faith Graham (164), #1 Mia Gutierrez (98), #2 Alexis Engel (92)
Hitting %: Graham (.114)
Assists: #5 Rylie Kolkow (346), Engel (146)
Service Aces: Engel & Gutierrez (55)
Digs: #0 Kylee Blazick (276), Engel (257), Gutierrez (240)
Blocks: Graham (36)
NOTES: The Owls have a better record on the road (7-5) than at home (2-8) this fall…Graham has enjoyed a breakout season and ranks fourth in the NAC in blocks, fifth in kills per set (2.34), and ninth in points (210).
WEST DIVISION:
#1 SUNY Delhi (6-0 NAC, 11-18 Overall)
Head Coach: Beau Bracchy (20th Season, 246-294)
NAC Championships: None (2022 Runner-up)
2023 NAC Tournament Results: Lost to Eastern Nazarene in semifinal, 0-3
Leaders:
Kills: #11 Sage Renneisen (244), #16 Madelyn Diep (193), #10 Katelyn Babcock & #13 Finley Benn (146)
Hitting %: Renneisen (.167), Babcock (.126)
Assists: #17 Jaiden Venute (334), #12 Michaella DeCapua (228)
Service Aces: #15 Brooke Schoppmeyer (47), Diep (46), #2 Audrey Logsdon (44)
Digs: Logsdon (407), Diep (278), Schoppmeyer (207)
Blocks: Babcock (43)#20 Noelle Placanica (34), Renneisen (31)
NOTES: The Broncos feature five players with at least 100 kills…Renneisen leads the conference in kills and attacks (735) and fourth in points (264.5)…Logsdon is the NAC’s far and away leader in digs…SUNY Delhi leads the NAC in digs (1,621), service aces (279), and total blocks (115).
#2 SUNY Cobleskill (3-3 NAC, 6-20 Overall)
Head Coach: Rachel Chandler (1st Season, 6-20)
NAC Championships: None (2021 Runner-up)
2023 NAC Tournament Results: Lost to Morrisville State in semifinal, 3-0
Leaders:
Kills: #10 Kathleen Smart (175), #22 Emma Hinze (148), #24 Hallie Gasner (143)
Hitting %: Hinze (.162)
Assists: #20 Baylee Kirschberg (360)
Service Aces: Smart and #25 Jade Ward (45)
Digs: Smart (247), #19 Jojo Haycock (195)
Blocks: #11 Ciarra Jager (37)
NOTES: Hinze ranks sixth in the conference in kills per set (2.25) while Smart is eighth (2.09)…Smart is also eighth in points (211).
#3 VTSU Johnson (3-3 NAC, 8-14 Overall)
Head Coach: Dongping Fang (4th Season, 39-51 (60-62 Overall))
NAC Championships: None
2023 NAC Tournament Results: Defeated Husson in quarterfinal, 3-2, lost to Maine Maritime in semifinal, 3-0
Leaders:
Kills: #8 Max Ludlow (203), #5 Aubrey Villa (157), #24 Natalia Medina (144)
Hitting %: Medina (.294)
Assists: #1 Delaney Gross (452)
Service Aces: Ludlow (60), Medina (47), Villa (45)
Digs: Villa (253), Ludlow (183)
Blocks: Medina (44)
NOTES: Ludlow is one of the top servers in the country and currently ranks fifth in NCAA DIII Volleyball with 0.85 aces per set…Among active players – at all three NCAA levels – she is the current career leader in aces per set (1.055) and also ranks fourth among active DIII players with 248 career service aces.