Southland Volleyball Preseason All-Conference Squads Announced

FRISCO, Texas – The 2020 Southland Conference Preseason All-Conference volleyball teams were announced Tuesday morning. Central Arkansas, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi produced three selections apiece. In total, eight institutions are represented among the preseason all-conference roster, with all 10 first-team honorees serving as automatic selections. Southland preseason all-conference teams are presented by Hercules Tires.

The Sugar Bears were represented by Madi Bowles and Emily Doss on the first team and Lexi Miller on the second team after closing out the 2019 season with a 10-6 conference record. Bowles and Doss earned automatic selections after being named to the 2019 all-conference roster. Newly-minted head coach John Newberry will lead UCA into the 2020 season after guiding his squad to a postseason appearance in the 2019 Southland Tournament.

Sam Houston will be led by Breanne Chausse, Ashley Lewis and Catherine Krieger, who earned preseason honors after leading the Kats to 19-14 overall record and a 12-4 mark in conference play during the 2019 season. Chausse and Lewis captured first-team honors, while Krieger was named a second-team honoree. Lewis (482) and Chausse (414) finished second and fourth in the league, respectively, for total kills in the 2019 season and combined for 896 of Sam Houston’s league-best 1,798 kills. Krieger, now a sophomore, appeared in all 33 matches while averaging 2.15 kills per set as a freshman, while also ranking fourth on the team with 286 kills.

Reigning conference and tournament champion Stephen F. Austin also nabbed three selections in first teamers Maddie Miller and Taya Mitchell and second-team honoree Ariana Pagan. The Ladyjacks cruised through the 2019 season with a 31-2 overall record and flawless 16-0 conference mark. Stephen F. Austin concluded the year with a first-round appearance at the NCAA tournament. Miller notched 595 digs in the season and led the conference with 5.31 digs per set. Mitchell proved to be a terror at the net, leading the league with 165 total blocks and 1.45 blocks per set. Pagan closed out her freshman campaign in 2019 with 290 digs, 47 blocks and 21 aces for the Ladyjacks.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi also garnered a pair automatic first-team nods in Carissa Barnes and Rachel Young, along with second-teamer Chloe Simon. The Islanders contended in the 2019 Southland Tournament championship, pushing the Ladyjacks to four sets. Barnes finished second in the conference with 48 aces last season, while Young proved to be a versatile threat with 217 kills and 44 blocks. In her junior season, Simon ranked among the Islanders’ top-five leaders in kills (282), digs (238) and blocks (25).

Houston Baptist accounted for two selections in first-teamer Mikayla Vivens and second-team honoree in Morgan Dewyer. New Orleans’ Lucie Pokorna, Nicholls’ Emily Gauthreaux and Southeastern Louisiana’s Samantha Gomez round out the 2020 preseason teams.

Returning players from the 2019 All-Conference teams were automatically named to the 2020 preseason all-conference rosters. Vacant positions are nominated and voted upon by the conference’s head coaches. Voting for one’s own players is not permitted.

First Team                                                                                                                                                                                                          

Second Team                                                                                                                                                                                                    

¹ 2019 All-Conference Selection

{Courtesy: Press Release from the Southland Conference}