ROCK HILL, S.C. --- The Tusculum University women's volleyball team has been voted to finish fifth in the South Atlantic Conference Coaches' Poll, the league announced today. Individually, a pair of Pioneers were named to the preseason list.

Emiah Burrowes earned first team laurels, while Martina Foster gathered a second team nod.

A perennial all-conference and region performer, Burrowes is 10 strikes shy of becoming the ninth player in Tusculum history to reach 1,000 kills. The native of Wesley Chapel, North Carolina also ranks third in career kills per set (3.29) and fourth in attempts per set (8.72). Burrowes played in every match in 2022, racking up a team-best 316 kills. She added eight assists, 11 service aces, 234 digs (second-most on the team), and 31 total blocks (13 solo, 18 assists). Burrowes upped her career-high to 26 kills as one of her three 20+ kill outings. She collected double-digit kills in 16 matches and double figures in digs across 11 contests.

Foster was a member of the 2022 SAC All-Freshman Team in her inaugural campaign. The Hickory N.C. native played in all 93 sets across the season, finishing with 170 kills on a .319 hitting percentage. Her average ranks eighth-best in a Pioneer single season. Foster also contributed 15 assists, 17 aces, 63 digs, and a team-high 73 total blocks (nine solo, 64 assists). She recorded at least one block in 25-of-26 matches, including 20 with multiple rejections.

The Pioneers received an even 100 total points in a vote of the conference's 13 head coaches. For the 18th consecutive season, Wingate has been voted to finish at the top of the league, garnering 140 points and 11 first place nods. Carson-Newman earned the two remaining first place votes to sit second with 130 points. Anderson (120), Lenoir-Rhyne (112), Tusculum, and Mars Hill (92) round out the top half of the poll. Newberry (69), Catawba (66), and Limestone (65) were separated by a mere four points. Lincoln Memorial was voted 10th with 46 tallies, followed by Emory & Henry (30). Coker and UVA Wise both collected 22 points to finish at the bottom of the preseason poll.

Fifth-year head coach Danielle Marante returns 14 student-athletes from her 2022 squad, who finished the season 14-12 (12-6 SAC). Marante brings in another 13 to complement the depth, comprised of five freshmen, five transfers, two beach volleyball players, and a returnee from the 2021 roster. Seven players on Marante's squad intend to be multi-sport athletes, with four pulling double-duty with the beach volleyball team, two on the track & field roster, and one suiting up for basketball season.

The Pioneers open the season with a tournament in South Carolina (Sept. 1-2) before hosting UVA Wise for the SAC opener on September 5 in Greeneville.

The 2023 South Atlantic Conference Championship returns to non-divisional seeding as the rankings will be based upon conference finish once again. The league's top eight teams will square off on November 13 at the campus site of the respective higher seed. The SAC Championship semifinals and finals are slated to be held once again at the Rock Hill Sport and Events Center on Wednesday and Thursday (Nov. 15-16), respectively.

2023 Women's Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll

First Team
Emiah Burrowes, Tusculum
Emily Johnson, Wingate
Maggie Young, Wingate
Laela Jimenez, Mars Hill (L)
Julia Wheeler, Carson-Newman
Emmagrace Cobb, Carson-Newman
Blake Cherry, Carson-Newman
Jaelyn Grimm, Anderson

Second Team
Emmaleigh Allen, Lenoir-Rhyne
Jordan Schmucker, Mars Hill
Maggie Mullen, Wingate (L)
Martina Foster, Tusculum
Samantha Shaffer, Newberry
Gabby Saye, Wingate
Rylie Sargent, Anderson
Chelsey Blume, Coker

Third Team
Lindsay McCurley, Anderson (L)
Kristen Moehring, Lincoln Memorial
Tatum Riddle, Limestone
Bailey Conner, UVA Wise
Josie Curran, Limestone
Taylor Hall, Newberry
Ketura Margaret, Lincoln Memorial
Sierrah Lemons, Lincoln Memorial