TRAFFORD, Pa. (pacathletics.org)--The Bethany College women's volleyball program was picked as the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) favorite for the second year in a row, according to the league's annual preseason coaches' poll. The results of the poll, voted on by the conference's 11 head coaches, were revealed with the PAC's Players to Watch List Friday afternoon.
The Bethany Bison tallied six first-place votes and 90 total points to be selected No. 1 for the fourth time in the league's preseason coaches' poll (2014, 2019, 2022, & 2023) since 2012. Bethany finished its 2022 season with a 17-13 overall record and 6-4 mark in the PAC. For the first time in 16 years, the Bison under new leadership at the helm of Jordan Barton.
Upon earning the No. 6 seed in last year’s tournament, Bethany went on to upset top seeded Thiel College in the championship match 3-1 earning the program’s third PAC title (2016, 2018, 2022). The Bison traveled to Transylvania University and fell to No. 6 Emory University in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Led by fourth-year head coach Leo Sayles, Grove City College finished second in the coaches' poll with four first-place votes and 86 points. Last season the Wolverines posted a final record of 18-11 (8-2 PAC) with a third-place conference finish, closing out the season against Penn State Behrend in the first round of the ECAC tournament.
Allegheny, earning the No. 3 seed in their first PAC tournament appearance last fall, suffered a four-set loss to conference champion, Bethany, in the quarterfinals on Nov. 1. The Gators, led by sixth-year head coach Kelly Barzak, were selected to finish third this upcoming season with 69 total points and one first-place vote.
Chatham University registered just a single point behind Allegheny in the coaches poll with 68 total points to be selected fourth. The Cougars return this season after a fourth-place tournament finish under the leadership of head coach Joe Bortak.
Thiel College totaled 61 points to finish fifth, while Saint Vincent College registered 53 points to finish sixth. Westminster College was next in seventh (52), Geneva College ranked eighth (47), Washington & Jefferson College was ninth (45), Waynesburg University placed 10th (18) and Franciscan University was 11th (16).
This season’s Players to Watch list includes four All-PAC First Team selections, seven All-PAC Second Team selections and seven All-PAC Honorable Mention selections from last fall.
Highlighting this year’s players to watch list are 2022 Player of the Year, Bethany rising senior Emma Marthins (Elkridge, Md. | Howard) and 2022 Newcomer of the Year, Chatham rising sophomore Alyssa Leskovac (Youngstown, Ohio | Austintown Fitch).
Marthins helped lead Bethany to its third PAC Championship Tournament title. Marthins hit .290 last season with 282 kills (2.50/s) and 112 total blocks (0.99/s). Her 282 kills were sixth in the league, while her 112 blocks were third. She totaled 366 points last fall, averaging 3.24 per set. During Bethany's 6-4 conference regular season, Marthins hit .305 with 114 kills (2.78/s) and 30 total blocks (0.73/s). In league play, Marthins posted 140 points (3.41/s). She had 10 or more kills 18 times last season, including a career-high 16, as well as a career-best 11 total blocks.
Leskovac had a terrific first season for Chatham, leading the PAC in kills (4.05) and points (4.47) per set. Her 4.05 kills per set average ranked 15th in Division III, while her 4.47 points per set ranked 28th. Leskovac's 385 kills and 424.5 points were both the second most in the league this fall. She finished the season hitting .189 (385-158-1199) and chipped in defensively with 138 digs (4.06/s). During the conference play last season, Leskovac totaled a PAC-high 158 kills (4.65/s) and league-best 168 points (4.94/s). She had 20 or more kills four times last season, going for a career-high 28 in a five-set win over Capital University on Sept. 16, 2022.
The Players to Watch list also includes 24 members of the Fall 2022 PAC Academic Honor Roll, which recognizes student-athletes on varsity sports teams who have earned a grade-point average (GPA) of 3.6 or higher on a 4.0 scale during their semester of competition.
The league’s regular season concludes Saturday, November 4 with the six-team PAC Championship Tournament scheduled to get underway Tuesday, Nov. 7. The title match is slated for Saturday, Nov. 11. The top two seeds will receive quarterfinal byes. All matches will be hosted by the higher seed.
This year’s tournament champion will secure the PAC’s automatic-qualifying bid to the Division III Championship. Team selections for the Division III Championship will be announced Monday, Nov. 13.
| 2023 PAC Women's Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll (Predicted order of finish) |
| School (first-place votes) |
Points |
2022 record (conference) |
| 1. Bethany College (6) |
90 |
17-13 (6-4 PAC) |
| 2. Grove City College (4) |
86 |
18-11 (8-2 PAC) |
| 3. Allegheny College (1) |
69 |
17-12 (7-3 PAC) |
| 4. Chatham University |
68 |
14-12 (6-4 PAC) |
| 5. Thiel College |
61 |
19-11 (9-1 PAC) |
| 6. Saint Vincent College |
53 |
17-9 (7-3 PAC) |
| 7. Westminster College |
52 |
5-24 (3-7 PAC) |
| 8. Geneva College |
47 |
9-17 (3-7 PAC) |
| 9. Washington & Jefferson College |
45 |
12-11 (3-7 PAC) |
| 10. Waynesburg University |
18 |
3-22 (1-9 PAC) |
| 11. Franciscan University |
16 |
9-14 (2-8 PAC) |
2023 PAC Women's Volleyball Players to Watch
| Allegheny College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Emma Chambers |
Sr. |
OH/MH |
Stoutsville, Ohio | Amanda Clearcreek |
| Jacy Diaz |
So. |
DS |
Barranquitas, Puerto Rico | Gallatin (Tenn.) |
| Dagney Javes |
Jr. |
MH |
Frederick, Colo. | Dawson School |
| Bethany College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Riley Felton |
Gr. |
MB |
Salineville, Ohio | Southern Local |
| Destiny Goodnight |
Sr. |
OH/MB |
Youngstown, Ohio | Ursuline | Mercyhurst NE |
| Emma Marthins |
Sr. |
MB |
Elkridge, Md. | Howard |
| Chatham University |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Meghan Dominek |
Sr. |
L/DS |
Pittsburgh, Pa. | North Hills |
| Alyssa Leskovac |
So. |
OH |
Youngstown, Ohio | Austintown Fitch |
| Ava Plunkard |
Fr. |
S |
Butler, Pa. | Butler High School |
| Jena Williams |
Sr. |
OH |
Seattle, Wash. | Roosevelt |
| Franciscan University |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Mary Jean Cadman |
Sr. |
OH |
Whitehall, Pa. | Allentown Central Catholic |
| Rani Hebert |
Gr. |
MH |
Lafayette, La. | Teurlings Catholic |
| Elizabeth Luebbers |
Jr. |
RS |
Nisswa, Minn. | Bishop Machebeuf |
| Grace Wallace |
Sr. |
S |
Reisterstown Md. | Mount De Sales Academy |
| Geneva College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Emily Nelson |
So. |
OH |
Kijabe, Kenya | Rift Valley Academy |
| Tess Neville |
Sr. |
OH |
Lisbon, Ohio | Crestview |
| Samantha Peachey |
Sr. |
S/RS |
Colorado Springs, Colo. | Liberty |
| Heather Seubert |
So. |
DS/L |
Camp Hill, Pa. | Trinity |
| Megan Veon |
Jr. |
MH |
New Castle, Pa. | Mohawk Area |
| Grove City College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Bella Costa |
So. |
OH |
Newbury, Ohio | Cuyahoga Valley Christian |
| Anna DeGraaf |
Sr. |
MB |
Cranberry Township, Pa. | Seneca Valley |
| Kennedy Kerr |
Jr. |
S |
East Grand Rapids, Mich. | East Grand Rapids |
| Gabby Lucas |
Sr. |
L/DS |
Butler, Pa. | Butler |
| Brooklyn Wirebaugh |
So. |
S |
Medina, Ohio | Cuyahoga Valley Christian |
| Saint Vincent College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Lauren Fox |
So. |
MH |
Hinckley, Ohio | Highland |
| Luciana Polk |
Sr. |
OH |
Pittsburgh, Pa. | Mount Lebanon |
| Stacy Ramos |
Jr. |
OH |
Chula Vista, Calif. | Olympian |
| Kaelyn Staples |
Jr. |
OH |
Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio | Cuyahoga Falls |
| Thiel College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Arin DeLattre |
Fr. |
MH |
Greensburg, Pa. | Hempfield |
| Daisy Jenness |
So. |
OH |
Pendleton, Ore. | Pendleton |
| Carlie Reynolds |
So. |
S |
Grove City, Pa. | Grove City Area |
| Washington & Jefferson College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Lizzie Carmichael |
Sr. |
MH |
Wyoming, Ohio | Wyoming |
| Faith Fetsko |
So. |
OH/DS |
South Park, Pa. | South Park |
| Adrianna Sacramento |
Jr. |
S/DS |
Pittsburgh, Pa. | Woodland Hills |
| Waynesburg University |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Emma Hyatt |
Jr. |
MH |
Carmichaels, Pa. | Carmichaels |
| Paige Mortimore |
So. |
OH |
Pittsburgh, Pa. | Brentwood |
| Trysten Smith |
Sr. |
S |
Senecaville, Ohio | Shenandoah |
| Jordan Stein |
Jr. |
DS/L |
Manor, Pa. | Norwin |
| Westminster College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Malia Duffy |
Sr. |
L |
Allison Park, Pa. | North Allegheny |
| Lauren Lampus |
Sr. |
OH |
Sarver, Pa. | Freeport |