Ladyjacks Picked To Defend Title
8/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Aug. 9, 2007
FRISCO, Texas - The Southland Conference has announced the 2007 preseason polls with the Ladyjacks picked to once again claim conference crown.
SFA was picked by both the coaches and sports information directors to hoist the program's seventh SLC championship banner in 2007. The Ladyjacks picked up seven first-place votes, and 106 total points, in the coaches poll to come in ahead of UT-Arlington and Texas State in the West Division. The Lady Mavericks picked up three first-place votes while Texas State pulled in the final first-place vote. In the East Division, McNeese State was picked first with 74 total points after taking the division title a year ago.
The sports information director's poll saw SFA pick up 10 of a possible 12 first-place votes, and 136 total points, in being picked over UT-Arlington and Texas State in the West. McNeese State was also picked to take the East, followed by Lamar and Central Arkansas.
The Ladyjacks will be out to defend its SLC regular season and tournament titles in 2007 after pulling out a perfect 16-0 conference regular season mark and sweeping through the conference tournament. SFA has won the last three SLC regular season titles and will enter this season riding a 51-match win streak over conference foes. That streak currently ranks the squad third in the nation in that category.
SFA is coming off of a historic season in 2006 that saw the team reel off the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament victory when the Ladyjacks went five games to eliminate Alabama in the first round. It was the first time a SLC team had won a NCAA Tournament match since 1989.
Head coach Debbie Humphreys enters her 20th season in 2007 after leading her team to a 31-4 record a year ago, including a school record 26-match win streak that lasted until the end of the season.
The season will kick off Aug. 24 when SFA treks to Omaha, Neb., to participate in the Bluejay Invitational against Montana State, Middle Tennessee and Creighton. Southland Conference play is set to begin Sept. 21 when Northwestern State invades William R. Johnson Coliseum with a 7 p.m. start time.
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