RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – On Thursday, the Great American Conference released the results of the 2024 volleyball preseason coaches poll. Oklahoma Baptist collected five first-place votes followed by Southwestern Oklahoma State, who received four and Harding, who garnered three.
In 2023, the Bison shared the regular-season title with Harding. They went on to claim their third GAC Championship by defeating Henderson State in the final. They return a pair of All-GAC selections in Jill Leslie and Avery Hellmuth. Leslie placed on the First Team and turned in an MVP performance at the GAC Championships. She ranked second in the GAC in attack percentage and seventh in points per set. Hellmuth placed eighth in blocks per set.
The Bulldogs won at least 12 conference games for the third-straight season. They return all three of their 2023 All-GAC honorees in Lacy Mott, Zoey Sparks and Jada Permenter. Mott, a First-Team pick, finished sixth in both kills and points per set. Sparks paced the GAC in blocks per set. Permenter, the league’s Freshman of the Year, averaged 4.53 digs per set.
In sharing the 2023 regular season with Oklahoma Baptist, The Lady Bisons earned their seventh GAC regular-season title. Skyler McKinnon landed on the All-GAC Second Team after she averaged 2.94 kills per set.
Henderson State claimed fourth followed by Ouachita Baptist. Last season, the Reddies reached the final of the GAC Championships for the second time in program history. They bring back a pair of All-GAC selections in Christiane Uzoh and Larkin Luke. Uzoh placed inside the top 10 in both kills and points per set. Luke finished second in blocks per set and third in attack percentage. The Tigers finished with a winning GAC record for the second-straight season. Courtney Hanson returns after winning GAC Setter of the Year. She led the conference in assists per set, 9.44. Emily Adams, Riley Braziel and Leah Gardner all earned Honorable Mention GAC accolades. Adams and Gardner finished as two of the six in the GAC to hit at least .300. Braziel ranked fourth in service aces per set.
Southeastern Oklahoma State edged out Southern Arkansas by one point for sixth. The Savage Storm registered an eight-win improvement from 2022. They bring back GAC Player of the Year D’Nari Mills and Second Team All-GAC setter Ruthie Forson. Mills paced the GAC and ranked in the top 10 nationally in both kills and points per set. Forson led the conference in attack percentage and ranked third in assists per set. Last season, the Mulerider qualified for an eight-team GAC Volleyball Championship for the first time since 2015. Alli Harrell won the GAC Coach of the Year award. She brings back two All-GAC selections in Kayte Delong and Lauryn Moultrie. Delong placed 10th in attack percentage and Moultrie ranked fourth in blocks.
East Central, Southern Nazarene and Northwestern OKlahoma State finished eighth, ninth and 10th, respectively in the voting. The Tigers’ Emma Strickland made the All-GAC First Team and Odalys Gonzalez earned Second-Team honors. Strickland took second to Mills in both kills and points per set. Gonzalez ranked fifth in both categories. The Crimson Storm’s Whitney Bowie placed seventh in blocks per set. The Rangers’ Erika Asencio-Soriano took home the GAC’s Newcomer of the Year honor after she finished third in kills and points per set and placed sixth in aces per set.
Arkansas Tech and Arkansas-Monticello rounded out the poll. The Blossoms feature a new head coach in Arlicia Ortiz.
The regular season begins on Friday, September 6 with all 12 schools participating in multiple-team events. Henderson State and Ouachita co-host an event with Southeastern Oklahoma State also traveling to Arkadelphia. The favored Bison head to West Florida; the Bulldogs sojourn to Trevecca Nazarene and Harding visits Union. Northwestern Oklahoma State and Southern Arkansas each trek to Midwestern State. Southern Nazarene, East Central and Arkansas-Monticello will all play in various Texas tournaments while Arkansas Tech competes in Pittsburg State.
The 2024 Volleyball Championships return to Hot Springs, Arkansas for the ninth time in league history. The top eight teams will compete for the conference’s automatic bid from Thursday, November 21 through Saturday, November 23.