Contact: Chassidy Holloway, Assistant Executive Director, holloway@midwestconference.org
GRINNELL, Iowa — The volleyball coaches of the Midwest Conference (MWC) have selected the Rams of Cornell College to claim the regular season title in this year’s preseason poll.
Since rejoining the MWC in 2012, the Rams have won seven regular season titles and six tournament champion crowns. Last season, the Rams secured both regular-season and tournament titles after going undefeated in Conference play. Cornell collected nine first-place votes and 81 points to secure the top spot in this year’s poll, while the Green Knights of St. Norbert received the final first-place vote and 66 points for second place.
The battle for the second through fourth place in the polls had little separation with the Pioneers of Grinnell coming in third place, three points shy behind the Green Knights with 63 points and the Lady Blues of Illinois College falling just short in fourth place with 62 points.
The Green Knights ended last season with a loss competing in their eleventh consecutive MWC Tournament Championship game. This season, head coach BJ Bryant and his team will look to challenge the Rams and claim their thirteenth Conference championship title.
Starting his third season as head coach of the Pioneers, Eric Ragan and his team are looking to build off of last year’s momentum where they set a school record for MWC wins and qualified for the tournament for the third year in a row, in hopes of winning their first Conference champion crown in school history.
The Lady Blues ended last year’s regular season on a seven-game win streak that earned them their first trip to the Conference tournament since 2006. Head Coach Kristy Duncan and her team expect to start this season strong with an experienced roster and a loaded non-conference schedule that will prepare them for MWC play.
The 2019 season kicks off on August 30 as nine of the league’s teams take action in non-conference matches and conference play begins on September 25. The 2019 MWC Volleyball Tournament will be held on and hosted by the team that finishes atop the regular season standings.
Full preseason poll results can be found below followed by quick facts for all ten MWC teams.
Team (First-Place Votes), Points
2019 MWC Volleyball Preseason Poll
- Cornell College (9), 81 points
- St. Norbert College (1), 66 points
- Grinnell College, 63 points
- Illinois College, 62 points
- Lake Forest College, 50 points
- Ripon College, 42 points
- Lawrence University, 25 points
- Monmouth College, 22 points
- Beloit College, 21 points
- Knox College, 18 points
Beloit College Buccaneers
Head Coach: Lehua Kadooka (1st Season)
2018: 8-17 (overall); 2-7 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 9th
Starters Returning: 4
Key Returnees: Amanda Baran (Sr), Eva Laun-Smith (Jr), Paige Wimbrow (Sr)
Cornell College Rams
Head Coach: Jeff Meeker (19
th Season)
2018: 18-10 (overall); 9-0 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 1st
Starters Returning: 3 + libero
Key Returnees: Danielle Amonica (Jr), Barbie Becker (Sr), Allison Eikenberry (Jr), Amber Frazier (Sr), Alissa McEndaffer (So), Sydney Meeker (Jr), Katie Wycoff (Jr)
Grinnell College Pioneers
Head Coach: Eric Ragan (3
rd Season)
2018: 17-16 (overall); 7-2 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 3rd
Starters Returning: 6
Key Returnees: Kaylin Kuhn (Jr), Julianna Roth (So)
Illinois College Lady Blues
Head Coach: Kristy Duncan (6
th Season)
2018: 22-7 (overall); 6-3 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 4th
Starters Returning: 4 + libero
Key Returnees: Elizabeth Ganley (Sr), Ali Pankey (Sr), Maddie Ramsey (Sr)
Knox College Prairie Fire
Head Coach: Pat Barry (1
st Season)
2018: 6-20 (overall); 1-8 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 10th
Starters Returning: 6
Key Returnees: Marissa Akers (Jr), Katie Anderson (So), Mady Ferris (Jr), Kaitlyn Haase (Jr), Autumn Schneider (So), Kylie Wolf (So)
Lake Forest College Foresters
Head Coach: Katie Rueffer (1
st Season)
2018: 12-15 (overall); 5-4 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 5th
Starters Returning: 4
Key Returnees: Isabel Donnelly (Jr), Olivia Drevs (Jr), Olivia Rhodes (Sr), Olivia Smith (Jr)
Lawrence University Vikings
Head Coach: Kim Falkenhagen (1
st Season)
2018: 3-25 (overall); 2-7 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 7th
Starters Returning: 4
Key Returnees: Tamia Cephus (So), Sophia Galassini (So), Averie Miller (Jr)
Monmouth College Scots
Head Coach: Emily Thebeau (1
st Season)
2018: 13-15 (overall); 2-7 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 8th
Starters Returning: 4 + libero
Key Returnees: Riley Cook (Jr), Laura Dulee (Sr), Ashley Farris (Sr), Renee Rude (Jr), Lauren Sperry (Sr)
Ripon College Redhawks
Head Coach: Katie Astrauskas (!0
th Season)
2018: 10-17 (overall); 4-5 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 6th
Starters Returning: 4
Key Returnees: Emily Allard (Jr), Brooke Bauer (Jr), Micaela Encarnacion (Jr), Inesha Wiseman (So)
St. Norbert College Green Knights
Head Coach: BJ Bryant (5
th Season)
2018:13-15 (overall); 7-2 (MWC)
2019 Projected MWC Finish: 2nd
Starters Returning: 5
Key Returnees: Grace Baumann (So), Lexie Van Hiel (Sr)