FOREST, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Volleyball Team, under the direction of Head Coach Kyla King, has been selected 10th in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference preseason poll, ODAC officials announced Wednesday. The poll is voted on by the 13 head coaches in the league.

RELATED – ODAC Preseason Poll

A year ago, the Wasps posted a 7-20 overall record with a 2-10 mark in league games. E&H missed earning a spot in the ODAC Tournament for just the second time in program history.

Emory & Henry will have one of the youngest teams in the region if not the country with 15 of their 16 players classified as either freshmen or sophomores. Defensive specialist Lauren Coolidge (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) is the lone senior on this year's squad.

Other top returners include sophomore middles Makayla Payne (Bristol, Va.) and Keely Doyle (Lexington, Va.), sophomore outside hitter Delaini Nagy (Clover, S.C.) and sophomore defensive specialist Abbie Jennings (Marion, Va.). Leading the newcomers is redshirt freshman Carley Williams (Bristol, Tenn.) a Tennessee High School graduate, who spent last fall at NCAA Division II UNC-Pembroke.

Perennial league powers Washington and Lee University and Randolph-Macon College, who have combined to win the past 18 league titles, top the poll. The Generals take first with eight first-place votes while the Yellow Jackets are second with four top nods. Bridgewater College is third with the final first-place pick as Virginia Wesleyan University and Roanoke College round out the top five.

Emory & Henry will get the 2019 campaign started with three matches in the Emory Classic in Atlanta, Georgia on Friday, August 30 and Saturday, August 31. The Wasps will open their home slate and ODAC action on Wednesday, September 11 against the WildCats of Randolph College (7:00 p.m.).

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2019 ODAC VOLLEYBALL PRESEASON POLL