Team Previews Courtesy of MAC Athletic Communications Departments

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The MAC Volleyball season begins this Friday, Aug. 30, while conference play is set for Thursday, Sept. 26. The 2024 MAC Volleyball Championship will take place on Nov. 22-24 or Nov. 23-25 at campus sites.

Below is a team-by-team preview for the 2024 MAC Women’s Volleyball season.

Team-By-Team Previews (In Preseason Coaches’ Poll Predicted Order)

Western Michigan Broncos
The Western Michigan volleyball team opens up the 2024 season this weekend as it welcomes LMU, Loyola Chicago, and Clemson to University Arena for its annual non-conference tournament. 

Western Michigan begins its 2024 season by hosting its annual non-conference tournament this weekend at University Arena. This season, the Broncos welcome LMU, Loyola Chicago, and Clemson to Kalamazoo for the three-day event.

After going 31-3, including a perfect 18-0 in league play, and winning both the MAC regular season and tournament titles in 2023, Western Michigan was unanimously voted by the other 11 coaches in the league to repeat as champions in the 2024 MAC Preseason Coaches Poll. WMU also received nine votes from around the league to repeat as conference tournament champions.

The reigning MAC Player and Setter of the Year, Logan Case enters the 2024 campaign already holding WMU's record for career assists. The fifth-year setter led NCAA DI in total assists a season ago (1,421) and was second nationally in assists per set at 11.94. She enters this season ranked seventh in MAC history with 5,097 career helpers.

Western Michigan went a perfect 14-0 at University Arena in 2023 and has won 17 in a row on its home court dating back to 2022. WMU's last loss on its home court was a four-set defeat at the hands of Toledo on October 15, 2022. It is the longest such streak for the Broncos since they won 20 straight home contests during the 2009 and 2010 seasons. WMU's program record for home wins was a 22-match run which spanned from the end of the 1999 campaign into the 2001 season. 
 
Bowling Green Falcons
The Bowling Green State University volleyball team will return to action for the 2024 campaign on Friday (Aug. 30), hosting the Best Western Invitational. Bowling Green will welcome three opponents to the Stroh Center for the invite. This year's invitational will feature Chicago State, who made an NIVC appearance in 2023, Illinois, who went 11-9 in Big Ten play last year, and Cincinnati, who is entering their second season as a member of the Big 12 conference.

Bowling Green will be one of four teams in the MAC this year to add a Taraflex Court, a new state-of-the-art playing surface that will optimize player performance while minimizing the risk of injury. The new Taraflex floor will be named the "Mo and Jon Stansbery Court" and will be officially unveiled on Aug. 30 before BGSU's first match in the Best Western Invitational, set for 6 p.m. against Chicago State.

Bowling Green is entering the program's 49th varsity season with the program beginning during the 1976 season. This year will mark the 42nd season in the Mid-American Conference for BGVB, officially joining the sport in the MAC in 1983.

The Best Western Invitational this season will mark the first time BGSU will open the season at home since the 2020-21 campaign, beginning that season with Northern Illinois. The last time BGSU opened the season with a home invitational was in 2017, hosting UIC, Duquesne, and Xavier.

Head Coach Danijela Tomic is entering her 13th season at the helm of the Falcons, starting with BGSU in 2012. Tomic is the fourth head coach in BGVB history and the second-longest tenured behind Denise Van De Walle's 29 seasons (1983-2011). 

With the retirement of long-time Miami (OH) head coach Carolyn Condit, Coach Tomic is now the second-longest tenured head coach in the MAC for women's volleyball, trailing only Western Michigan's Colleen Munson who enters her 20th campaign with Western Michigan. Condit previously held the top spot, spending 40 seasons with the RedHawks.

Junior middle blocker Jessica Andrews is entering the 2024 campaign on the brink of a career milestone. Andrews has logged 198 career total blocks, needing just two more to reach the 200 mark for her BGSU career. Additionally, she has 28 career solo blocks, needing to reach a total of 30 to enter the Top 10 during the program's Rally Scoring Era (2001-Present). The Rally Scoring Era record is held by Katie Kidwell with 80, which ranks 10th in the overall program record book.

During the 2023 season, Lauryn Hovey landed 59 aces, ranking second in program history for a single season, 18th in the country, and led the MAC. Thanks to the strong season, Hovey is closing in on a few marks on the all-time lists. Currently, her 85 career aces are tied for ninth during BGSU's Rally Scoring Era, needing five to jump up to a tie for seventh with 90. As for the overall program list, Hovey needs to reach 107 career aces, needing 22 more, to tie Julia Walz for 10th all-time.
 
Ball State Cardinals
The Ball State women's volleyball team begins its 53rd season of play Friday when it battles Seton Hall (10 a.m.) and Bryant (4:30 p.m.) on the opening day of the Florida Atlantic Invitational ... The Cardinals close the tournament Saturday with a 1 p.m. match-up versus host FAU.

With no divisions for the first time since the 1996 season, the Ball State women's volleyball team received 98 points in the league's annual coaches poll, trailing only Western Michigan (121) and Bowling Green (102) ... With coaches unable to vote for their teams, WMU earned 11 of the 12 votes to win the MAC regular season title, with BGSU claiming the other ... The Broncos, who also received votes in the 2024 AVCA Preseason Coaches Poll, were also selected as the favorite to win the MAC Volleyball Championship with nine votes, followed by the Falcons (2) and the Cardinals (1).

Ball State finished the 2023 season with a 17-15 (13-5 MAC) record, earning a bid into the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) ... The Cardinals picked up a first-round victory over host Middle Tennessee, before falling in the round of 16 to Clemson.

The Cardinals return 11 players from last season's squad, including five who were in the starting rotation at the end of the year ... Two of them are returning All-MAC First Team honorees in senior setter Megan Wielonski and redshirt sophomore outside Aniya Kennedy. Wielonski was one of the nation's top setters, ranking 13th nationally with 1,269 assists in 2023 ... The effort helped the Cardinals rank 54th nationally with a .245 team attack percentage. Kennedy played a big part in that as well, ranking 32nd nationally with a 4.12 kills-per-set average ... Her 470 total kills were 31st nationally.
 
Buffalo Bulls
The University at Buffalo women's volleyball team begins their 2024 campaign as they host the Buffalo Invite presented by UB Dental on Friday, Aug. 30 through Sunday, Sept. 1. The Bulls posted a 23-9 overall record and 13-5 in MAC play a season ago earning a trip to the MAC Semifinals. In doing so, they participated in the program's second postseason tournament at the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) as a Division I program.

The Bulls will play the Oakland Golden Grizzlies on Friday at 6 p.m. for their season opener. On Saturday, the competition will continue with the team hosting the Hampton Pirates at 6 p.m. The Buffalo Invite will come to a close as the Bulls battle the Army West Point Black Knights at 3 p.m. on Sunday. The entire tournament will be streamed on UB's YouTube channel.

The Bulls bring back eight veteran players while adding eight newcomers, all of which are freshmen.

Of the returners, the Bulls welcome back four of their five All-MAC honorees from last season. Setter Mandy Leigh returns for her senior season along with libero Maria Futey. Last season, M. Leigh earned First-Team All-MAC honors as she was 35^th in the NCAA with 10.39 assists per set. Abby Leigh is back for her sixth and final season. She earned First-Team All-MAC honors and was 29^th in the country with a hitting percentage of .391. Katrin Trebichavska led the MAC with 0.54 aces per set as she took home First-Team All-MAC honors last season. Sophomore outside hitter Manoela Forlin earned MAC All-Freshman Team honors as well as MAC All-Tournament Team honors.

Ohio Bobcats
The Ohio volleyball team will open the 2024 season with its first home event, the Bobcat Invitational presented by Athens County Convention & Visitors Bureau, in the Convocation Center on Friday, August 30, and Saturday, August 31.

The Bobcat Invitational will include competition against three other Division I volleyball programs: Xavier, Appalachian State, and Wright State.

Ohio was selected to finish fifth overall and received 84 points in the 2024 Mid-American Conference Volleyball Preseason Poll, as announced by the league on Monday, August 26. Junior Anna Kharchynska (Kyiv, Ukraine) was named to the 2024 Preseason All-MAC Team.
 
Toledo Rockets
The Toledo women’s volleyball team starts its 2024 season at Binghamton's Bearcat Classic in Vestal, N.Y. on Aug. 30-31. 

The Rockets open up competition on Friday at 1 p.m. against Bucknell and wrap up the day taking on host Binghamton at 7 p.m. The team will close out the Bearcat Classic at 11 a.m. on Saturday against Merrimack.

Toledo returns three starters from the 2023 squad: fifth-year senior Taylor Alt, junior Izzy Granger, and sophomore Macy Hatkevich. Alt was named to the Preseason All-MAC Team on Monday. She is the program's all-time leader in kills (1,707), kills per set (4.00), and attacks (4,559).

The Rockets welcome five newcomers to the fold, including three freshmen and two transfers.
Head Coach Jason Oliver is entering his seventh season at the helm of the Rockets. He is the first coach ever to guide the Rockets to back-to-back winning seasons in MAC play and has led UT to a 32-22 (.593) ledger in conference action over the past three years.
 
Central Michigan Chippewas
The Central Michigan Volleyball team heads to Normal, Ill. to open their 2024 campaign at the Linda Herman Classic hosted by Illinois State. The Chippewas will face Lindenwood, Illinois State, and Bellarmine. Lindenwood and Bellarmine are first-time opponents as CMU Assistant Coach Stef Jankiewicz heads back to her alma mater where she was a setter for the RedBirds (2017-2020).
 
Northern Illinois Huskies
Opening the 2024 season at home, the Northern Illinois University Huskies Volleyball are set to face Western Illinois and Milwaukee in the Huskie Invitational, August 30 to September 1.  The Huskies face Western Illinois on August 30 at 6 p.m. before taking on Milwaukee on September 1 at 3 p.m.

Since the 1980 season, the Huskies have posted a 26-11-4 record at the Huskie Invitational.
The Huskies will welcome six new faces to the program for the fall season while returning four members from the 2023 squad who saw action in over 100 sets.

Charli Atiemo (Milford, Mich./Farmington Hills Mercy), Sophie Hurt (Elmhurst, Ill./IC Catholic Prep), Nikolette Nedic (Willowbrook, Ill./Hinsdale Central), and Crew Hoffmeier (Louisville, Ky./Assumption) all saw action in over 100 sets last year for the Huskies with Atiemo saw action in every game for the Huskies and led the team in blocks per set (1.10).  Hoffmeier led the team with 4.60 digs per set while Nedic led in kills per set (2.70). Hurt was second for assists per set at 3.99.

Atiemo led the league in blocks per set while Savanah Brandt (Pearl City, Ill./Pearl City) was also in the top 10 for blocks per set in the league. Hoffmeier was third in the league for digs per set.
 
Akron Zips
The Akron Volleyball team begins the 2024 season with a pair of matches in Puerto Rico against Evansville (Aug 30) and Liberty (Aug 31).

The Zips are coming off a 13-16 2023 campaign that saw the Blue and Gold go 8-10 in the MAC. Akron was led by Faith Johnson in kills with 393 while Eliska Vytiskova was the leader in assists (1,005) and aces (50). Vanessa Del Real led the Zips in digs with 404 and Ellen Kinnaird was the leader in blocks with 98.0. 

Akron finished fourth in the MAC in total blocks (224.5) and blocks per set (2.00). The Blue and Gold also finished first in aces (221) and aces per set (1.97).

Ellen Kinnaird was sixth in hitting % (.331) and in blocks per set (.88) the past season in the MAC. Vannessa Del Real was fifth in aces per set (.44) and 10th in digs per set (3.61). Faith Johnson finished the 2023 season seventh in points per set (4.13) and eighth in kills per set (3.51) in the conference.

The Zips were picked to finish 9th in the 2024 MAC Preseason Poll.
 
Miami RedHawks
The RedHawks start their season by traveling to the Norfolk State Tournament on Friday, Aug. 30-31. Miami will begin the tournament against Lamar at 12:30 p.m. Friday, and follow this up with another match versus Gardner-Webb at 3:30 p.m. The RedHawks close out the weekend versus Norfolk State at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.

The Red and White return 12 of 15 players from the 2023 season. Seniors Caroline Cermack,  and Gracie Norris lead a solid veteran group.

First-year head coach Dan Gwitt prepares for the 2024 season with three new assistant coaches, Kristina Fultz,  and Haley Davidson. Nine newcomers will be joining the Miami roster as well. When the fifth head coach in Miami Volleyball history met his players for the first time in early February to introduce himself, it didn't take long for the RedHawks to get to work. And while it's been a whirlwind for Gwitt since day one, including finalizing a roster, hiring assistant coaches, updating the locker room, building a culture, and finishing a schedule, he is ecstatic about where things stand for the program heading into his first season at the helm.
 
Eastern Michigan Eagles
The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team is set to open its 2024 season at the 2024 Hampton Inn Invitational, hosted by Indiana University-Indianapolis inside "The Jungle" in Indianapolis, Ind., Friday-Saturday, Aug. 30-31. The Eagles will play three matches in the Hoosier State, two of which will take place Friday. The Eagles will open the season against Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville at 10 a.m., before picking up play later that evening, as they are slated to take on the host, IU-Indy at 5 p.m. Saturday entails one match against Valparaiso University at 2 p.m.

Head Coach Kevin Foeman is entering his second season at the helm of the program and his 10th year as a head coach. Overall, he holds a 158-114 career record. His previous stops include Division II Ashland University (2018-22), where he won four division titles and the 2022 GMAC Regular Season Championship. Foeman also coached at Lake Erie College (2015-17), where he led the program to their first postseason appearance in its history in 2016.

Freshman setter Taylor Smith was named Michigan Miss Volleyball, announced by the Detroit Free Press, on Nov. 13. Smith had a decorated high school career including honors such as MIVCA All-State First Team (2022-23), MIVCA All-State Second Team (2021), MIVCA All-Region (2021-23), all-conference first team (2021-23), all-conference honorable mention (2020), and earned a Division III Michigan State Championship at Pewamo-Westphalia High School in 2022.

Eastern ended the 2023 season on a high note, as they won two of its last three contests. The consecutive wins over Kent State, Nov. 10-11, marked the first consecutive wins of the Foeman era. Additionally, the Eagles swept the Golden Flashes, on Nov. 11, marking the first sweep in Ypsilanti for Foeman.

The Eagles are set for 32 regular season matches, 13 of which will take place at the George Gervin GameAbove Center in Ypsilanti, and 19 of which will be played on the road. Eastern will venture outside of Mid-American Conference play often, as they will face 14 institutions outside of the MAC. Postseason action will begin Nov. 22 with the MAC Tournament.
 
Kent State Golden Flashes

Kent State will be in action at the Michigan Nike Classic during the opening weekend of the 2024 volleyball season.

Kent State will still play host Michigan, but both matches are now scheduled for Sunday. The first contest is slated for 11 a.m. with a rematch at 3 p.m. Both matches against the Wolverines will be streamed on BTN+.

Third-year head coach Haley Eckerman revamped the roster, as only five student-athletes on this season's 17-member roster were part of the program last season. The Golden Flashes return the top four pin hitters, led by outside hitter Mackenzie McGuire. The junior was fifth in the Mid-American Conference in kills per set (3.86) a year ago and had the most total kills (359) by a Kent State player since 2017. Outside hitter Logan Henderson was second on the team at 2.10 kills per set and earned a spot on the MAC All-Freshman Team. Outside hitter Karina Salinas (144 kills) and right side Anna Shoemake (69 kills) are also back.

Junior Kendall White returns at the setter position after totaling 725 assists during her first season as a Flash. White led the team with 14 double-doubles and her 270 digs are the most among returners.

Six of the newcomers have college experience, including four at the Division I level. Outside hitter Breanna Burrell is the most accomplished of the group after posting 943 kills over four seasons at Northwestern State. The graduate student was a third-team All-Southland Conference performer as a sophomore.