CCU

Chants Tabbed Third In Preseason Poll; Laffin Named Preseason All-Conference

Coastal Carolina recieved one first place vote in the Big South Preseason poll.

       

Sophomore Megan Laffin was named to the Preseason All-Big South.

Sophomore Megan Laffin was named to the Preseason All-Big South.

July 26, 2011

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (www.BigSouthSports.com) - Coastal Carolina's volleyball team has been selected third in the Big South Conference annual preseason poll, as voted by the leagues' head volleyball coaches.

Liberty, who earned the regular season championship last season, finished atop of the poll with 99 points, including nine first place votes. Defending conference tournament champions High Point ranked second with 81 points. The Chanticleers tallied 78 total points in the voting, including one of ten possible first place votes. In fourth place was Winthrop with 70 points and in fifth was new Big South member Campbell with 53 points. Charleston Southern and UNC Asheville tied for the No. 6 slot with 45 points, ahead of Presbyterian College's 36 points. Radford was picked No. 9 with 25 points and Gardner-Webb rounds out the list with 18 points.

Additionally, sophomore Meghan Laffin has been named to the Preseason All-Conference team. Laffin, an All-Freshman team selection last season twice earned Big South Freshman of the Week honors as she appeared in all 120 sets of the season. As a middle blocker, Laffin ranked second on the team with 88 blocks, including 20 solo blocks. She also finished third on the team with 229 kills, averaging 1.91 kills per set and an attack percentage of .287.

Winthrop's Becca Toor was named the league's Preseason Player of the Year after finishing the 2010 season ranked No. 2 in the conference with a .329 percentage at the net. Liberty led the way with three student-athletes on the Preseason All-Conference team in Jade Craycraft, Loren Thomas and Kelly Haseman. Michelle Chakirelis of High Point, Cindi Miller and Presley Mabry of Presbyterian College joined Coastal's Laffin to round out the squad.

The Chanticleers will open the season on Friday, August 26 at the UNC Greensboro Tournament as they take on the host Spartans at 1 p.m.