Volleyball Chosen Eighth in Annual Preseason Coaches' Poll
RINDGE, N.H. (August 15, 2017) – The Franklin Pierce University volleyball team has been selected to finish eighth in the Northeast-10 Conference after the announcement of the 2017 Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll this afternoon by the league offices.
The Ravens earned 98 total points which placed them eighth out of the 15 NE10 programs. Defending NCAA East Regional Champion American International College has been chosen as the preseason favorite as they snagged a total of 185 points and eight of the 15 first place votes.
The University of New Haven Chargers collected four first place votes and 178 points en route to the second spot in the poll. Le Moyne College rounded out the top three with 166 points while Adelphi University tallied the final three first place votes in the fourth position and Pace University is slated to finish fifth with 139 markers. The projected top four teams were separated by 25 total points
TO VIEW THE ENTIRE NE10 VOLLEYBALL PRESEASON POLL RELEASE PLEASE CLICK HERE.
In 2016, the Crimson and Grey finished the year at 12-15 overall and 8-6 in league play. They concluded the final seven games in the regular season by going 6-1 and clinching the no. 6 seed for their fifth straight conference tournament berth. For the 2017 campaign, the Ravens return team captain Hannah St. Jean (Olympia, Wash.) and 2016 NE10 All-Rookie Team selection Danielle Varricchio (Boynton Beach, Fla.), but lost NE10 Second Team middle hitter Abigail Sonuga and Third Team outside hitter Katie Leidhold in the offseason.
Franklin Pierce will begin their 2017 slate on Friday, September 1st when they travel to West Chester University for day one of Ramfest 2017 with first serve set for 2:00 p.m.
2017 Northeast-10 Conference Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll
| Teams | Points (First Place Votes) |
| 1. American International | 185 (8) |
| 2. New Haven | 178 (4) |
| 3. Le Moyne | 166 |
| 4. Adelphi | 160 (3) |
| 5. Pace | 139 |
| 6. Saint Anselm | 129 |
| 7. Bentley | 128 |
| 8. Franklin Pierce | 98 |
| 9. Stonehill | 96 |
| 10. Southern New Hampshire | 72 |
| 11. Southern Connecticut State | 65 |
| 12. Saint Rose | 64 |
| 13. Merrimack | 42 |
| 14. Assumption | 41 |
| 15. Saint Michael's | 20 |
For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce volleyball athletic apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).