Tigers Open 2013 Season Ranked No. 3 In The Nation
Wittenberg is expected to be in the hunt for another volleyball national championship as coaches nationwide voted the Tigers No. 3 in the AVCA preseason poll.
Springfield, Ohio – Coaches across the country are once projecting tremendous success for the Wittenberg University volleyball team as the Tigers have checked in at No. 3 in the preseason American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) NCAA Division III national poll.
Wittenberg is coming off a 2012 season in which the Tigers finished with a record of 27-5 overall and a No. 5 national ranking in the final poll. The 2011 NCAA Division III national champion, Wittenberg opens the 2013 campaign behind only defending national titlist St. Thomas and 2010 champion Calvin, which defeated the Tigers in a tense 3-2 decision in the 2012 NCAA Division III Tournament Round of 16.
Wittenberg ranks fifth in NCAA Division III history with 176 appearances in the weekly poll, and the Tigers have ranked in the final national top 25 every year since 1999.
The Tigers captured their 18th NCAC regular season and tournament titles in 2012. Wittenberg has lost just three matches in NCAC competition since 1997.
Under Head Coach Paco Labrador, the Tigers have compiled a phenomenal 323-46 record since 2003, including an NCAC regular season mark of 122-2. He leads active NCAA Division III coaches with a .875 win percentage and ranks second among active coaches in all NCAA divisions.
A promising 2013 season opens with Aug. 30-31 with the Wittenberg Courtyard Marriott National Invitational, which includes Johns Hopkins, Emory and St. Thomas, all of which are also ranked in the preseason AVCA poll. The challenging non-conference schedule also includes nationally ranked foes Juniata, Hope, Calvin, Washington University, Otterbein and Mount Union. Wittenberg opens NCAC regular season play Friday, Sept. 20, with home match against Oberlin.
Ten letterwinners return to the line-up in 2013, including four starters, led by sophomore right-side hitter Kara Seidenstricker (London, Ohio/Jonathan Alder), who is coming off a ground-breaking inaugural collegiate campaign in which she claimed NCAC Newcomer and Player of the Year honors, Great Lakes Region Freshman of the Year honors, and NCAA Division III Freshman of the Year honors. Also back are junior setter Meghan Vodopich (Canton, Ohio/Perry), the 2011 NCAC Newcomer of the Year, and senior middle hitter Andrea Behling (Columbus, Ind./North), who earned honorable mention All-America honors in 2012.
Written By: Ryan Maurer