DENVER - The Western Athletic Conference volleyball coaches have selected Missouri-Kansas City to win the WAC regular-season crown in 2015. The coaches also voted on the preseason award winners and Utah Valley senior middle blocker Lauren Bakker was the pick for WAC Preseason Player of the Year.
UMKC received four of the first-place votes and 45 total points to earn the top spot in the poll. NM State earned two first-place votes and 40 total points, followed by Seattle U with one first-place vote and 37 points in third place. CSU Bakersfield was picked to finish fourth with 33 points and the other first-place vote, followed by Utah Valley in fifth with 28 points. Grand Canyon in sixth with 20 points, while The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and Chicago State round out the poll with 13 and eight points, respectively.
UMKC, NM State and Seattle U placed the most players on the preseason All-WAC team with three apiece, while CSU Bakersfield and Utah Valley had two each. Joining Bakker on the preseason team is teammate Macky Fifita, UMKC's Sydney Crimmins, Jessica Hendin and Taryn Miller, NM State's Nathalie Castellanos, Gwen Murphy and Bradley Nash, Seattle U's Matea Mamic, Martina Samadan and Jelena Vujcin, CSU Bakersfield's Luiza Martins and Kelsee Sawyer, and Grand Canyon's Natalie Tardy.
The 2015 season begins Friday, Aug. 28, with all eight teams in tournament action. The 2015 WAC Tournament, hosted by UMKC, will be held Nov. 19-21, at Swinney Recreation Center, and will include the top six eligible teams in the regular-season standings.
2015 WAC Preseason Coaches' Poll
| Rank |
Team (first-place votes) |
Points |
| 1 |
Missouri-Kansas City (4) |
45 |
| 2 |
NM State (2) |
40 |
| 3 |
Seattle U (1) |
37 |
| 4 |
CSU Bakersfield (1) |
33 |
| 5 |
Utah Valley |
28 |
| 6 |
Grand Canyon |
20 |
| 7 |
UT Rio Grande Valley |
13 |
| 8 |
Chicago State |
8 |
2015 Preseason All-WAC Team
| Player |
Yr. |
Pos. |
School |
| Lauren Bakker |
Sr. |
MB |
Utah Valley |
| Nathalie Castellanos |
Sr. |
S/OH |
NM State |
| Sydney Crimmins |
Sr. |
RS |
Missouri-Kansas City |
| Macky Fifita |
Jr. |
OH |
Utah Valley |
| Jessica Hendin |
Sr. |
OH |
Missouri-Kansas City |
| Matea Mamic |
Jr. |
OH |
Seattle U |
| Luiza Martins |
Sr. |
S |
CSU Bakersfield |
| Taryn Miller |
Sr. |
L |
Missouri-Kansas City |
| Gwen Murphy |
Sr. |
OH |
NM State |
| Bradley Nash |
Sr. |
OPP |
NM State |
| Martina Samadan |
Sr. |
MB |
Seattle U |
| Kelsee Sawyer |
Sr. |
OH |
CSU Bakersfield |
| Natalie Tardy |
So. |
OH |
Grand Canyon |
| Jelena Vujcin |
So. |
OPP/MB |
Seattle U |