• Tournament Central

WHEELING, W.Va. (Dec. 4) - The 2019 Atlantic Regional Volleyball Tournament returns to the Alma Grace McDonough Center from December 5-7, with top-seed Wheeling University serving as the host for the event.

The Wheeling volleyball team was awarded an eighth-consecutive bid to host the regional tournament after posting a 31-3 overall record. The Cardinals will face Fayetteville State (19-6), the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) champion, in an opening round match at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday night.

The winner of that match will face the winner of the match at 5 p.m. between No. 4 Shippensburg and No. 5 Millersville in the semifinals on Friday night.
 
On the other side of the bracket, No. 2 seed Gannon will take on No. 7 seed Seton Hill in a 2018 Atlantic Region Semifinal rematch at 2:30 p.m., while No. 3 seed East Stroudsburg will take on No. 6 Shepherd in a re-match of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championship to open the tournament at 12 p.m.
 
The winner from the Atlantic Regional advances to the national quarterfinals in Denver, Colorado at the Auraria Events Center on Thursday, December 12. Teams advancing to the final site will be reseeded before the national quarterfinals.

Below are previews of each of the eight participating teams:

No. 1 Wheeling
 
The Cardinals earned the automatic bid out of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) after winning its league title for the seventh-straight year (since its inception) with a mark of 31-3. Wheeling, which ranked No. 15 in the most recent American Volleyball Coaches of America (AVCA) Division II poll, is hosting the NCAA Atlantic Regional Tournament for the eighth-straight year.
 
Head Coach Christy Benner's Cardinals lead Division II in both kills per set (14.89) and assists per set (14.17) this season. MEC Player of the Year Stephanie Sylvester ranks first in Division II with 12.79 assists per set and sits second with 1,407 total assists this season. She recently eclipsed 5,000 assists for her career in the MEC Tournament Championship win over Urbana.
 
Haley Kramer, the 2018 AVCA and D2CCA Atlantic Region Player of the Year, leads the team and ranks third in Division II with a hitting percentage of .437 this season. 
 
Defensively, the Cardinals rank twelfth in digs per set (19.14) and 10th in blocks per set (2.47) in Division II. MEC Libero of the Year Audrey Francis ranks fourth in the nation with 6.10 digs per set, as well as ninth in total digs with 671.
 
In addition to All-MEC First Team selections Kramer, Sylvester, and Francis, the Cardinals also featured three other all-conference performers in second-teamer Bre Kramer and honorable mentions Cassie Meyer and Allonda Watkins. 

No. 2 Gannon

Gannon was awarded the No. 2 seed in the Atlantic Regional for the fourth-straight year and are coming off of its 11^th-straight season with 20 wins or more. 
The Golden Knights won the Northwest Division in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) and was awarded the number one seed in the PSAC Tournament. The Golden Knights opened the tournament with a 3-1 win over Edinboro, but were knocked off on their home court in the PSAC Semifinals by Shepherd in three sets.

Gannon finished its year with six players on the All-PSAC teams. Ashley Beyers, Ashley Kerestes and Ally Smith were all named First Team All-PSAC, Lauren Sampson was named Second Team All-PSAC and Toni Leitshuh and Ashley McClung earned nods on the third team. 

Junior Ashley Beyers enters the Atlantic Regional ranked 13^th in the nation in assists per set (11.27) and 18^th in total assists (1,240). Senior Ally Smith enters play ranked 30^th in Division II with 49 service aces. As a team, Gannon finished atop of the PSAC in hitting percentage, assists, kills, opponent kills, and opponent services aces.

No. 3 East Stroudsburg

East Stroudsburg enters the Atlantic Regional as the No. 3 seed after emerging as the PSAC Tournament Champions. The Warriors are in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 19 years after winning the PSAC Championship for the first time since 1987.

East Stroudsburg knocked off Seton Hill and Shippensburg to advance to the PSAC Tournament Championship Match. The Warriors closed out the championship with a thrilling five-set victory over Shepherd to secure a bid into this year's NCAA Tournament.

The Warriors had multiple major award winners. Middle Blocker Trea-sure Ketter was named PSAC Defensive Player of the Year and currently leads Division II with 1.56 blocks per set. For the team's efforts, Head Coach Kevin Rodgers was named the PSAC Coach of the Year. 

Along with those awards, three Warriors were named to all-conference teams. Outside Hitter Sarah Smith claimed a spot on the First Team, while senior Sam Dunphy and junior Trea-sure Ketter were named to the Second Team All-PSAC. 

The Warriors led the PSAC and enter the tournament ranked third in Division II in opponent hitting percentage (.098) and rank fourth in the nation with 333.5 total blocks and 2.61 blocks per set. 
 
No. 4 Shippensburg

The Raiders earned the No. 4 seed in the Atlantic Region after losing to eventual PSAC Champion East Stroudsburg in the semifinal round of the PSAC Tournament. Shippensburg will be making its seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in the last eight seasons under Head Coach Leanne Piscotty. 
 
The Raiders led the PSAC in digs per set, team assists, team attacks per set, team digs, team kills, and team total attacks. Shippesnburg is currently ranked sixth in the nation with 20.02 digs per set and fourth with 2,422 team digs. 
 
Junior setter Emily Hangen was named to the All-PSAC First Team after leading the conference and ranking fifth in the nation with a 1,332 assists. Hangen has recorded 50 or more assists in six matches this season. 
 
Samantha Webber was named to the All-PSAC First Team after she for the best hitting percentage in the PSAC (.329). She ranks in the top-10 in the league with 378 kills and an average of 3.18 per set. Webber's 89 total blocks rank 14th in the PSAC and she has also posted a hitting percentage of .200 or better in all but four matches.
 
Senior outside hitter Gabriella Johnson was named to the All-PSAC Second Team, while senior libero Megan Frostburg and Kendall Johnson were named to the All-PSAC Third Team. 
 
No. 5 Millersville
 
The Marauders earned the No. 5 seed in the Atlantic Region after losing to Shepherd in the quarterfinals of the PSAC Tournament. Millersville is making its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 1995 after posting a 25-8 overall record.
 
Millersville had the second-best hitting percentage in the PSAC (.233) and was led by PSAC Player of the Year Jayci Suseland. Suseland, a three-time PSAC Southeast Division Athlete of the Week, is leading the PSAC in hitting percentage at a .332 mark despite totaling at least 70 more attempts than any other player in the top-13. She ranked fourth in the league in total kills and broke the single-season Millersville record that had stood since 1995. 
 
Senior setter Katie Laughman scored All-PSAC Second Team recognition, and junior Lindsey Blevins earned a third-team honor. Laughman ranked fourth in the PSAC in assists and set a Millersville single-season record with 1,137 in 33 matches. She is the first player in program history with 900-plus assists in three seasons. Blevins 374 kills were a career high and a total that ranks seventh all time at Millersville.

No. 6 Shepherd

The Rams enter this year's Atlantic Regional as the No. 6 seed after their first season as a member of the PSAC. Shepherd is making its second-consecutive appearance in the tournament after making its first-ever appearance last year. 

Shepherd entered the PSAC tournament as the No. 5 seed and finished third in the PSAC Southeast Division with a record of 28-6. The Rams opened the PSAC Tournament with a 3-1 win at Millersville to advance to a semifinal meeting with top-seed Gannon in Erie. 

The Rams notched a 3-0 upset-win over Gannon to advance to the championship game, where it came up short in five sets to East Stroudsburg.

Three members of the team earned All-PSAC honors. Senior outside hitter Peyton Lindblad was named a First Team All-PSAC selection, while seniors Cambriea Hill and Imani Major were both named to the All-PSAC Second Team. In addition to those three, Elyssia Smith was named the PSAC Freshman of the Year.

Nationally, Georgia Ohmke ranks second in the conference and 13^th in Division II in blocks per set (1.27). Peyton Lindblad ranks 40^th in the nation in aces per set and 17^th with 451 total kills. Imani Major ranks 32^nd in digs per set and 12^th in total digs (659). 
 
No. 7 Seton Hill
Last season's runner-up in the region, the Griffins secured the No. 7 seed in this year's tournament. 

Seton Hill was seeded sixth in the PSAC Tournament after it won the Southwest Division with a record of 19-10 overall. The Griffins took on eventual-champion East Stroudsburg in the opening round of the PSAC Tournament and were defeated 3-1. Despite the early round loss in the loaded PSAC Tournament, Seton Hill was still able to grab the final at-large bid from the Atlantic Region.

Seton Hill is led by a pair of All-PSAC players. Junior outside hitter Viktoria Farian was named a first-team selection and led the team in multiple categories. She ranks 31^st in Division II in aces per set (.47), 39^th in in attacks per set (10.86), 31^st in kills per set (3.94), 23^rd in points per set (4.63), 29^th in services aces (50) and 35^th in total kills (422). 

In addition to Farian, senior outside hitter, Jillian Livorse, landed a spot on the All-PSAC Third Team.

No. 8 Fayetteville State
 
The Broncos earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Tournament after winning the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Championship.
 
Head Coach Reeshemah Johnson was named the CIAA Volleyball Coach of the Year for a second consecutive season. Her Broncos enter the tournament on an 11-match win streak, including a three-set win over Shaw in the CIAA Tournament Championship.
 
Fayetteville State ranked first in the CIAA for assists per set and kills per set. The Broncos currently lead all of Division II with an opponent hitting percentage of .083 this season. 
 
Junior libero Jasmine Jacinto was named CIAA Defensive Player of the Year and a First-Team All-CIAA selection. Jacinto averaged a CIAA-best 4.42 digs per set while totaling 261 digs. Outside hitter Casandra Watson was named CIAA Rookie of the Year and First-Team All-CIAA. 
 
Watson led all freshmen with 188 kills, and 216.5 points this season. Her 2.76 kills and 3.18 points per set was good enough for fourth and sixth in the CIAA.