American Athletic Conference Volleyball Preseason Poll Announced
August 17, 2015 | Volleyball
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The American Athletic Conference released its 2015 Volleyball Preseason Poll which was voted on by the conference's 11 head coaches Monday. East Carolina was chosen to tie for ninth with Tulane as the Pirates collected a total of 22 points. UCF, which garnered 94 points and seven first-place votes, was selected as the preseason favorite to win conference.
SMU, which tallied 91 points and three first-place votes, came in second, while Temple (84 points, 1 first-place vote) was picked third. Tulsa (75 points), Cincinnati (56 points) and Memphis (51) were chosen to finish fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively. USF (48 points) and UConn (41 points) secured the seventh and eighth slots, respectively, while Houston (21 points) rounded out the poll in 11th.
The Pirates are coming off of a 15-16 season in which they recorded the most wins as a team since 2007. ECU finished the conference season with a 6-14 mark to finish ninth in league action.
Heading into the 2015 season, East Carolina returns 13 players to the court while welcoming five newcomers -- four freshmen and one junior transfer.
East Carolina kicks off the year at Savannah State on Sunday, August 30 at 1 p.m. The Pirates' home opener is game one of the East Carolina Invitational on Friday, September 11 at 5 p.m., when ECU hosts Hampton at Williams Arena inside Minges Coliseum.
Preseason Coaches Poll (First Place Votes)
1. UCF -- 94 Points (7)
2. SMU -- 91 Points (3)
3. Temple -- 84 Points (1)
4. Tulsa -- 75 Points
5. Cincinnati -- 56 Points
6. Memphis -- 51 Points
7. USF -- 48 Points
8. UConn -- 41 Points
T9. East Carolina -- 22 Points
T9. Tulane -- 22 Points
11. Houston -- 21 Points
