DC Volleyball Picked Third in HCAC Preseason Poll

DEFIANCE, Ohio – The 2009 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Preseason Poll was recently released by the league office. The Yellow Jackets placed five student-athletes on the HCAC Preseason Watch List and were picked to finish third in the nine-team league. 

Defiance garnered 59 points in the poll and trailed only Anderson (66) and Mount St. Joseph (80). DC was followed in the coaches' poll by Bluffton (51), Manchester (47), Hanover (44), Transylvania (26), Rose-Hulman (19) and Franklin (13). 

The Jackets finished the 2008 campaign with a 15-13 overall clip and ended second in the league standings with a 6-2 mark. Defiance advanced to the championship match of the HCAC Tournament, before falling short against MSJ. 

DC will look to build on its success from last season and will lean on returning All-HCAC performers Danyel Lipps and Julie Brunsman to lead the experienced group. Lipps and Brunsman were two of the five players selected as HCAC Preseason Players to Watch from Defiance and were joined by fellow returners Heather Bradshaw and Marlea Rolander, as well as incoming freshman Ashlyn Howell. 

Defiance will get the 2009 season underway on September 4 and 5, when it competes in the Mount Union Tournament in Alliance, Ohio.