Murray State University Athletics
Volleyball Picked to Finish First in OVC Preseason Poll
8/11/2009 3:30:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
After finishing the regular season in a tie for third place and falling in the championship match of the 2008 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament, the Murray State volleyball team has been picked to finish first in the 2009 OVC Preseason Poll. Sophomores Jade Guo and Logan Su and junior Sara Hayden also earned preseason honors, as voted on by the leagues head coaches and sports information directors.
The Racers, who finished 18-13 overall and 13-5 in the OVC in 2008, received nine first-place votes and a total of 142 points . Morehead State claimed the second-spot on the preseason poll with 136 points (five first-place votes). Southeast Missouri State (125), Austin Peay (123), and Tennessee Tech (115) all received two first-place votes and round out the top five in the poll. Jacksonville State (85) was in the sixth spot, while UT Martin (52), Eastern Kentucky (49), Tennessee State (45), and Eastern Illinois (29) rounded out the poll.
Of the three individual honors garnered by MSU players, two earned a spot on the 2009 Preseason All-OVC First Team and one claimed second team honors. Guo and Hayden were named to the first team, while Su was on the second team.
A native of DaTong, Shanxi, China, Guo was the 2008 OVC Freshman of the Year and was named to the All-OVC Newcomer and Second Teams in 2008. Guo finished the regular season averaging 10.42 assists per set against league opponents, good for the No. 2 spot on the OVC charts.
Hayden, a native of Louisville, Ky., led the team in hitting percentage, with a .335 (290k-57e-553ta) percentage. She was also third in the OVC in the same category.
Su, who also earned 2008 All-OVC Newcomer and Second Team honors, led the Racers with 3.12 kills per set and recorded the second-highest attack percentage on the team when facing OVC opponents. The A La Shan Zuo Qui, Inner Mongolia, China, native also had a season-best 11 service aces and added 27 (9-18) blocks.
Murray State will begin the 2009 campaign at the Middle Tennessee State Tournament, Aug. 28-29 in Murfreesboro, Tenn. The Racers first action of the year will be against Xavier, Friday, Aug. 28 at 5 p.m. The team is also scheduled to face the host Blue Raiders, Saturday, Aug. 29 at 1 p.m. and Kansas at 5 p.m.
