LAKELAND - With five returning starters and 11 letterwinners back from last season's 22-12 squad that finished third in the Sunshine State Conference and advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Division II South Regional, the Florida Southern volleyball team opens its 2013 season here this weekend by hosting the FSC/Terrace Hotel Classic at Jenkins Field House.
The Moccasins, who were tabbed to finish third in the Preseason SSC Coaches Poll and earned 16 votes in the Preseason AVCA Coaches poll, will welcome six other teams this weekend to Lakeland for this season opening tournament. Four teams, including FSC, played in the NCAA Tournament a year ago, including No. 2 ranked Tampa, who finished as National Runner-up after falling in in the championship match to Concordia-St. Paul.
Among the key returning starters for the Mocs are senior setter Ali Skayhan (Beaverton, Ore.), junior outside hitter Kate Stromberg (Lexington, Ky.), junior right side hitter Gabby Fernandez (Tampa, Fla.), sophomore middle blocker Kayshia Brady (Welaka, Fla.) and senior middle blocker Dominique Hale (Kingman, Ariz.).
Skayhan, who earned Second-Team AVCA All-American honors a season ago, recorded 1,245 assists, 392 digs, a team-best 50 aces, hitting a team-best .346 and recording three triple-doubles in 2012, while Stromberg, who sat out the final 12 matches of the year due to a knee injury, was named a Second-Team All-SSC selection after recording 256 kills and 251 digs prior to her injury.
Fernandez, who earned Honorable Mention AVCA All-American honors, collected 322 kills, 173 digs, 29 aces and 44 blocks a year ago and Brady, who was named the SSC Freshman and Newcomer of the Year and was also selected to the NCAA D-II South Regional All-Tournament Team, was second on the team in blocks with 65 and recorded 235 kills and hit .341 and Hale, who led the Mocs with 77 blocks and recorded 167 kills.
The Mocs open the FSC/Terrace Hotel Classic by facing Anderson in Friday's opener at 3 p.m. at Jenkins Field House, before concluding the first day of the tournament at 7:30 p.m. against Northwood, who received the highest amount of votes of teams earning votes in the Preseason AVCA Coaches' Poll. On Saturday, Sept. 7, the Mocs face Belmont Abbey at 12:30 p.m. and conclude the tournament at 7:30 p.m. against Wisconsin-Parkside.
Anderson posted a 13-17 overall record last season and a 5-13 mark in the South Atlantic Conference return eight players that saw extensive time last season, including four juniors that have already combined to play nearly 900 sets and start nearly 60 matches for the Trojans under fifth year coach Craig Mosqueda. Anderson, who was tabbed to finish 10th in the Preseason SAC Coaches Poll, are led by junior setter Meghan Cautero and junior outside hitter Shannon Gillespie. Cautero, who enters the 2013 season fifth on the school's all-time chart with 1,810 assists, recorded 1,057 assists, a team-best 26 aces and added 235 digs in 2012, while Gillespie, who earned Second-Team All-SAC honors a year ago and was tabbed a Preseason Second-Team All-SAC honoree, finished sixth in the SAC in kills (355) and is just a 119 kills shy of moving into the school's Top 10 list for career kills. Gillespie also recorded 418 digs last year.
Northwood, who are one of two NCAA D-II Tournament teams the Mocs will play this weekend, enters the 2013 season looking to continue the success they achieved in 2012 as the Timberwolves posted a 26-7 record and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2008 and 10th time in school history. Along the way, Northwood claimed both the regular season and GLIAC Tournament titles and won a school record tying 17 GLIAC matches. Tim Koth enters his 10th season at Northwood and returns four starters, plus its libero from last season's squad, including senior outside hitter Juliia Pakhomenko. Pakhomenko, who was named a First-Team AVCA All-American and also earned GLIAC Player of the Year and GLIAC Tournament MVP honors, led the GLIAC with 57 aces and totaled 476 kills, recorded 334 digs and hit .274. In addition to Pakhomenko, the other three returning starters are senior setter Jordan Dunn (1,123 assists, 274 digs), senior middle blocker Kristin Perschon (153 kills, 74 blocks) and senior outside hitter Ally Hoomaian (162 kills, 36 digs).
Belmont Abbey, who earned its first-ever NCAA Division II Tournament berth last season after securing its first-ever Conference Carolinas title, returns four starters from last season's squad that set new school records for wins (23) and conference wins (14). The Crusaders, who were tabbed to win the Conference Carolinas title in the league's preseason poll, are coached by Mary DeJute, who enters her fifth season at BAC and is already the school's all-time winningest volleyball coach. Among the key returners for the Crusaders are sophomore outside hitter Hannah Schellenberg and senior outside hitter Lydia Schellenberg, who are sisters and are natives of Jacksonville. Hannah Schellenberg was named the 2012 Conference Carolinas Freshman of the Year after leading the team in kills (385), while Lydia Schellenberg earned Second-Team All-Conference Carolinas honors after finishing second on the team in kills (262) and leading in digs (342).
The Mocs final opponent, Wisconsin-Parkside is coached by former Moccasin Christina Paciero, who graduated from FSC in 1991 and was a member of the school's national semifinalist team in 1990 coached by Lois Webb. Paciero, who played 81 matches in two seasons (1989-90) with the Mocs, recorded 142 kills, 846 assists, 689 digs, 161 aces with the Mocs. Her 161 aces are currently tied for ninth on the school's all-time chart. Paciero's third Ranger squad welcomes back three returning starters, a returning libero and 11 letterwinners from last season's 21-10 team that finished fifth in the East Division of the GLVC. The top two returners for UWP, who earned six votes in the Preseason AVCA Coaches' Poll, are senior outside hitter Bridget Nickel and senior libero Sarah Mlachnik. Nickel earned AVCA All-Midwest Region honors a year ago and was an All-GLVC selection after leading the team in kills (369), aces (25) and was second in digs (243), while Mlachnik recorded a team-best 524 digs. One key player returning after missing 2012 due to injury is redshirt senior setter Cayla Flood, who recorded 736 assists and 58 aces as a junior in 2011.
Tampa will play the same four teams in the two-day event. The Spartans, in their 30th season under coach Chris Catanach, posted a 32-4 mark last season and finished as the NCAA D-II National Runner-Up after falling in a thrilling five-set match to Concordia-St. Paul in the NCAA Tournament championship match. UT, who is ranked second in the Preseason AVCA Coaches' Poll and was tabbed as the preseason favorite by the coaches in the SSC Preseason poll, returns two All-Americans in senior outside hitter Holly Reschke (.305 hitting pct., 376 kills, 217 digs, 50 blocks) and junior middle blocker Meagan Burke (.408 hitting pct., 247 kills, 104 blocks), but must replace the production of 2012 NCAA D-II National Player of the Year Danielle Selkridge, who was a senior last season.
The seventh and final team in the tournament this season is Kentucky State, who is scheduled to play Belmont Abbey and Wisconsin-Parkside on Friday. The Thorobrettes, who are from the SIAC, welcome back three starters from last season's 12-23 team that finished 12-4 and claimed the SIAC West Division title a season ago. Christina Coleman's second KSU squad will be led by junior outside hitter Emily Grieshaber and sophomore setter Sabrena Rose, who both earned Preseason All-SIAC honors. Last season, Grieshaber was a First-Team All-SIAC selection after finishing fourth in the league in kills as she averaged 3.28 kills per set and was second in digs with 171, while Rose was third in the league in assists as she averaged 6.61 per set and led the team with 57 aces.
The full schedule of this year's FSC/Terrace Hotel Classic:
Friday, Sept. 6
10 a.m. - Wisconsin-Parkside vs. Anderson
12:30 p.m. - Tampa vs. Northwood
12:30 p.m. - Belmont Abbey vs. Kentucky State (Court 2)
3 p.m. - Florida Southern vs. Anderson
5:30 p.m. - Wisconsin-Parkside vs. Kentucky State
5:30 p.m. - Tampa vs. Belmont Abbey (Court 2)
7:30 p.m. - Florida Southern vs. Northwood
Saturday, Sept. 7
10 a.m. - Northwood vs. Anderson
11 a.m. - Tampa vs. Wisconsin-Parkside (Court 2)
12:30 p.m. - Florida Southern vs. Belmont Abbey
3 p.m. - Tampa vs. Anderson
5:30 p.m. - Northwood vs. Belmont Abbey
7:30 p.m. - Florida Southern vs. Wisconsin-Parkside
