Eagles volleyball picked to finish fourth in SAC preseason poll
The South Atlantic Conference has announced its 2025-2026 preseason coaches poll featuring Carson-Newman in the fourth place slot.
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The South Atlantic Conference has announced its 2025-2026 preseason coaches poll featuring Carson-Newman in the fourth place slot.
The Eagles were consistently one of the best teams in the conference last season until they hit a winless streak toward the end of the season and into the SAC quarterfinals. With a 16-11 record overall and a 12-6 conference record, they finished fifth in the SAC to Mars Hill.
Despite that, the Eagles land fourth among conference opponents as picked by coaches around the SAC.
The Eagles offense will remain largely the same from last year as they return both of their top attackers from last season including 1st team All-SAC selection Maddie Hurst and 2nd team All-SAC selection Emerson Ahsmuhs. Additionally, they welcome back 2nd team All-SAC selection Blair Cherry to the setters.
"Preseason polls don't typically mean much but they serve as motivation," said head coach Cat Collins. "We didn't finish fourth at the end of the season, but that speaks to the talent that our returners have. This group has worked hard over the preseason. We have a lot more work to do but our team has much bigger goals than fourth in the conference."
As for the teams ahead of them, Wingate is the clear favorite to win with ten first place votes. Lenoir-Rhyne was chosen to finish second with one first place vote and a few points ahead of third place pick Anderson who also picked up one first place vote.
Lincoln Memorial (71 points) is right behind Carson-Newman (76 points) in the standings.
Mars Hill, Tusculum, Virginia-Wise, Newberry, and Catawba round out the top ten in the SAC.
SAC Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll
- Wingate (10) - 109
- Lenoir-Rhyne (1) - 97
- Anderson (1) - 89
- Carson-Newman - 76
- Lincoln Memorial - 71
- Mars Hill - 64
- Tusculum - 49
- UVA Wise - 32
- Newberry - 27
- Catawba - 26
- Coker - 21
- Emory & Henry - 11
