PORTLAND, Ore. – The Seattle Pacific Falcons are movin' on up in the realm of Great Northwest Athletic Conference volleyball.
 
The Falcons have been picked for a third-place finish in the GNAC preseason poll that was released today. SPU received 72 points in voting by the 10 conference coaches.
 
Central Washington is a unanimous choice for No. 1, receiving 100 points with all 10 first-place votes. Western Washington is No. 2 with 85 points. Right behind SPU with 71 points is Simon Fraser. Defending conference champion Alaska Anchorage is No. 5 with 61.
 
The Falcons were picked No. 5 last season and finished in a tie for third with Central at 11-7 (13-13 overall) during head coach Jason Rhine's first year at the helm. Seattle Pacific also was picked No. 5 in 2021 and wound up tied for fourth.
 
 

"It's exciting to hear that the conference thinks we deserve where we got last year (tie for third)," Rhine said. "We have a lot coming back, so I'm not surprised in that sense. But I think it's still exciting that (other coaches) see the same things… It's fun to hear, but it's going to be a tough conference and a tough schedule, no matter what."
 
The last time Seattle Pacific was picked higher than fifth was No. 4 in 2012. Their last time in the preseason top three was as the No. 1 choice in 2011.
 
 
 

SPU returns one of the conference's most experienced squads. Leading the way is two-time All-GNAC unanimous first-team selection Hannah Hair. A senior 6-foot-1 middle blocker (junior in eligibility due to the pandemic shutdown in 2020), Hair averaged 1.06 blocks per set in 2022 and hit a career-best .345.

Joining her in the middle is Allison Wilks, also a senior with junior eligibility. The 6-1 Wilks had a breakout season last fall, starting 24 of the 26 matches, playing all 100 sets, and earning All-GNAC honorable mention. She recorded single-season career bests of 97 total blocks, 127 kills, and a team-high 38 service aces.
 
Also back along the front row for Seattle Pacific are outside hitter / opposites Sarah Brachvogel and Sydney Perry, middle blocker Erin Smith, and opposite Maddie Pruden. All four are seniors with junior eligibility.
 
 

Brachvogel had by far her best-ever season last fall with 175 kills, 42 blocks, 31 aces, and 228.5 total points. Perry hammered 106 kills and got her hands on 24 blocks. Smith posted career-best numbers with 105 kills, 45 blocks, and 129 total points.

Pruden, in playing all 100 sets and starting 25 of the 26 matches, put 205 kills onto the floor (second-highest on the team), factored into 62 blocks and notched 237.0 points, all of which were career-bests.


 
 

Emily Tulino returns at setter. Now a junior, she led the Falcons with 476 assists in 2022, splitting time with now-graduated Lindsey Lambert. Tulino also came up with 222 digs, the No. 2 total on the team, and delivered 20 service aces.

Abigail Cunningham, another junior, is back at libero. She played in all but one match and led Seattle Pacific with 357 digs (3.76 per set). In addition to her defensive skills, Cunningham racked up 101 assists and served 21 aces.
 
Libero / defensive specialist Zoe Shuckhart, outside hitter Sarah Day, and middle blocker Brianna Ingram round out SPU's returners.

"They have expectations of themselves," Rhine said. "For us, the challenge is just taking it one day at a time and not thinking too much about those expectations and just playing the next match and trying to get a little bit better each day in the gym."
 
The Falcons have a group of five newcomers. One of those is sophomore outside hitter Anna Pelluer. A native of Redmond just across Lake Washington from Seattle, the 6-footer saw limited action at Idaho last season before making the move back closer to home.
 
The other four are freshmen from various locations around the country. Coco Barnett, a 5-11 opposite, and Avery Veenendall, a 5-8 setter, both hail from Wisconsin. Sophia Chambers is a 5-9 setter from Texas, and Christina Lopez is a 5-4 libero from Arizona. Each of the four was an all-conference player. Lopez helped her Valley Vista High School team win the regional championship. Chambers was the district co-MVP and an All-Area Utility MVP.
 
Seattle Pacific plays its first 11 matches on the road. That starts with the season-opening Seaside Invitational on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 1 and 2. The first match will be at Cal State San Marcos against Lewis University; the final three will be at Point Loma Nazarene in San Diego.
 
An exhibition match against Vanguard is set for Tuesday, Sept. 5, in Costa Mesa, Calif. Then it'll be back to San Marcos for the Cougar Classic on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 8 and 9.
 
Conference play begins at Western Oregon on Thursday, Sept. 14, and continues at Saint Martin's on Saturday the 16th..
 
The home opener will be a GNAC match against Northwest Nazarene on Thursday, Sept. 21, at 7:00 p.m. in Brougham Pavilion. Following the Nighthawks into town will be Central Washington on Saturday the 23rd at 2:00 p.m.
 
 
2023 GNAC VOLLEYBALL PRESEASON COACHES POLL
 
   Rank     Team (1^st-place votes)                   Points    GNAC (Finish)     Overall
   1    Central Washington (10)    100   11-7 (T3rd)   17-11
   2    Western Washington          85   16-2 (2^nd )   21-6
   3    Seattle Pacific             72   11-7 (T3rd)   13-13
   4    Simon Fraser                71   10-8 (5^th)    13-14
   5    Alaska Anchorage            61   17-1 (1^st)    27-3
   6    Alaska Fairbanks            55    8-10 (7^th)   18-12
   7    Northwest Nazarene          38    9-9 (6^th)    16-10
   8    Western Oregon              35    5-13 (8^th)    9-17
   9    Saint Martin's              20    3-15 (9^th)   13-15
 10     Montana State Billings      13    0-18 (10^th)   7-20
 
Points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.