Gulls predicted to finish second in CCC Preseason Poll
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) announced today that Roger Williams has taken the top ranking among nine teams as voted upon by the league's women's volleyball head coaches. The Hawks took six of the nine first place votes.
Endicott (73) earned three first place votes and was selected to finish second behind Roger Williams (78) in the CCC Preseason Poll. University of New England (59), Salve Regina (56), Western New England (49), Gordon (32), Wentworth (27), Eastern Nazarene (20) and Curry (11) rounded out the remainder of the rankings.
2011 marks the 19th season of varsity competition for Endicott women’s volleyball, a program familiar with postseason success especially in recent years. Twelfth-year head coach Tim Byram, however, knows that this year’s team, following the loss of three impactful seniors from the 2010 squad, must continue to grow and improve in all facets of the game to be contenders for the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) crown this fall.
“Our goal is to always win a title and after a couple of years of not getting there, the team has a fire to get it done this fall,” said Byram on his team’s prospects for a fifth conference championship since 2004. “We will need to develop and grow not just our game-time skills, but also as teammates, competitors and friends.”
Byram’s Gulls have made back-to-back trips in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Tournament after coming up just short in the CCC Tournament with semifinals and finals appearances in 2009 and 2010. Last season, the Blue and Green sailed through the first two rounds of the CCC Tournament with straight set victories in the quarterfinals and semifinals before running into top-seeded Roger Williams in the championship match. Endicott went on to host the ECAC New England Tournament as the \#1 seed, defeated Daniel Webster and Colby-Sawyer in the early rounds before falling to the \#2 seed Keene State 3-1 in the title match.
Endicott finished their 2010 campaign with a 24-16 overall record and a 9-1 mark in league play. The 24 wins was the ninth time in program history and the sixth time in the last seven seasons that the Gulls have won at least 20 matches. Under Coach Byram, the Blue and Green have compiled a 224-164 (.577) record with 83 wins to just 17 losses in-conference play.
Looking forward to the 2011 season, Endicott returns five players who started in at least 80% of their games played last year including senior captains Elyse Barbour and Sarah Allshouse. Three of the five returning starters earned All-CCC honors last year. Junior outside hitter Falyn Torelli, junior defensive specialist/libero Ashley Norley, and sophomore middle blocker Callie Dolan are the other expected returning starters. The roster is made up of two seniors, three juniors, four sophomores, and three freshmen.
After transferring to Endicott for her junior season from MidAmerica Nazarene University, setter Sarah Allshouse returns after posting the third-highest assist total in a single season by Gulls setter last year. Allshouse, who was a Second Team All-CCC winner, dished out 8.51 assists per set and totaled 1,234 assists in 2010, just short of the record set by 2008 graduate Meghan Hall. Byram anticipates that sophomore transfer Sarah Philipbar, a former New York state champion out of East Hampton High School, will catch on quickly to the level of collegiate ball after not playing her freshman year at High Point University as Endicott’s backup setter.
Right side hitter and 2010 Second Team All-CCC honoree Elyse Barbour finished second behind single-season kill record holder Brittany Phillips (’11) with 331 kills in 2010. With the New England Women’s Volleyball Association All-New England and First Team All-CCC player gone due to graduation, the 6’3 Barbour will be asked to increase her attack numbers while maintaining her effectiveness on the block. Last season, Barbour finished behind career block leader Amy Grigg (’11) with 130 total blocks, an average of 0.91 per set. She also showed her versatility on the court with the ability to backup Allshouse on setting duties and may also see time as a middle blocker this fall.
At the outside hitter spot, Falyn Torelli made a huge jump in her sophomore campaign by increasing her kill totals from 24 in 2009 to 325 in 2010 and was honored as a Honorable Mention All-CCC player. The junior played in 39 of Endicott’s 40 matches last year and ranked among the team leaders in kills (325), kills per set (2.29), aces (36), and digs (258). Joining Torelli on the outside will be Alexandra Gearin who is in her first year of competition for the Gulls. Gearin, an academic sophomore who tore her ACL on the second day of preseason in 2010, may also see time in the middle during the season. She was the 2010 California All-CIF Division 5 Player of the Year prior to arriving to Endicott last year. Also expected to see time at outside hitter will be sophomore Carly Beers, freshman Emily Gillich and junior Ashley Norley. Beers played in 24 matches as a freshman with strong attacking, setting, and defensive numbers. Gillich, out of Shenendehowa High School, played for one of the top club teams in New York and is a proven hard-worker and is strong on the serve. She will likely see time serving and as a defensive specialist.
Ashley Norley, Endicott’s digs leader in 2010 with 625, has proven to be a versatile and reliable player for Coach Byram the last two seasons. Norley has 1,069 career digs and has average 4.02 digs per set which bodes well for her chances of breaking the Endicott career digs record of 2,316 set by Brittany Nolan (’09). Norley will certainly return to her role as the team’s libero in 2011 but Beers and junior Gillian Kucharski will be competing with freshmen Jessica Petrucci and Emily Gillich for playing time on defense. Each of these players has shown they are capable of making contributions to defense and ball control.
Sophomore Callie Dolan and freshman Hannah Dahlgren are anticipated to be starters at middle blocker this fall. Dolan is coming off a 2010 freshman campaign where she totaled 69 total blocks and contributed offensively with 134 kills. Out of Queensbury High School in New York, Dahlgren is quick and athletic with good jumping skills.
Looking ahead to the 2011 fall schedule, Endicott will compete against some of New England’s powerhouse programs over the first two weeks of the season before traveling to Colorado to play in a tournament against three teams ranked top-20 in the nation. Endicott’s non-conference regional foes will include 17th-ranked UMass Boston, Wellesley, Middlebury, Williams, Tufts, Coast Guard, Bowdoin, Connecticut College, and Keene State. The Colorado College Invitational in mid-September features match ups against a 3rd-ranked Washington University squad, 16th-ranked Colorado College and 20th-ranked Concordia-Moorhead. The Gulls also look forward to a competitive CCC schedule which includes a rematch with Roger Williams in mid-October , the team that thwarted Endicott’s efforts for a fifth conference championship banner.
2011 CCC Women's Volleyball Preseason Poll
| Institution | Point Total |
| Roger Williams | 78 (6) |
| Endicott | 73 (3) |
| University of New England | 59 |
| Salve Regina | 56 |
| Western New England | 49 |
| Gordon | 32 |
| Wentworth | 27 |
| Eastern Nazarene | 20 |
| Curry | 11 |