MELBOURNE, Fla. – The Sunshine State Conference has announced the 2024 Preseason Coaches’ Poll. The Nova Southeastern Sharks, in year three under Head Coach Kacie Ehinger, enter the season ranked third in the league and garnered one first place vote.
As a program, NSU Volleyball has advanced to the NCAA South Region Tournament for three consecutive seasons including back-to-back appearances with Ehinger at the helm.
The Sharks return the majority of the 2023 team, including Taylor Stockman, a two-time AVCA All-American honoree, who is establishing herself as one of the most decorated student-athletes in program history. In her career, Stockman has accumulated 676 kills, 156 blocks, and 794 points. In addition to the two All-American honors, she has been recognized as the 2022 Sunshine State Conference Freshman of the Year, is a three-time All-Sunshine State Conference honoree.
NSU also brings back Madelyn Hooper, Jordan Chessar, Kate Mihacevich, Brittany Landrum, Emma Ehmann, Marley Navaretta, Elizabeth Price, Avery Piatt, Varshini Panuganti, Ella Kern, Gabrielle Spankus, Olivia Aniol and Juliana Imbuzeiro.
Landrum, who has been a member of each of the last three Sharks NCAA Tournament appearances, pursues the opportunity to continue cementing herself as one of, if not the premier blocker in program history. She ranks second all-time in total blocks (376), just 42 away from becoming the program leader in blocks, while already holding the program mark in blocks-per-set (1.1).
NSU and Ehinger welcomed four new Sharks into the mix, as Brooke Spurgeon, Camie Mitrovich, Emerson Deferme, and Emma Isroff.
As a league, the Sunshine State Conference had six teams make the NCAA Regional Tournament – Tampa, Lynn, Embry-Riddle, Eckerd, Florida Southern and NSU – while setting a new league record with 15 AVCA All-American recipients.
Sunshine State Conference Preseason Coaches’ Poll
| Rank | School | Total Points (Fist Place Votes) |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Tampa | 100 (10) |
| 2. | Lynn | 88 |
| 3. | Nova Southeastern | 72 (1) |
| 4. | Embry-Riddle | 70 |
| 5. | Florida Southern | 65 |
| 6. | Eckerd | 58 |
| 7. | Barry | 52 |
| 8. | Rollins | 39 |
| 9. | Palm Beach Atlantic | 28 |
| 10. | Florida Tech | 17 |
| 11. | Saint Leo | 16 |
The Nova Southeastern Sharks begin the 2024 season at the Ashland Invite on Friday, September 6th, with a pair of matches against East Stroudsburg and Ashland. To stay up-to-date on Sharks Volleyball, be sure to follow on Instagram at NSU_VBall and X at NSU_VB.
