CPP opens 2010 at home vs. Simon Fraser on Sept. 2
It would be safe to say that the 2009 Cal Poly Pomona volleyball season was a learning experience for all involved. Six freshmen saw a quantity of minutes for the Broncos, who finished with an overall record of 11-18 and tied for seventh at 8-14 in arguably the nation’s most-difficult conference – the California Collegiate Athletic Association.
Veteran head coach Rosie Wegrich, who begins her 19th season at the helm, welcomes back all six of those 2009 first-year athletes along with four upperclassmen as the Broncos open the 2010 season Thursday night when they play host to Simon Fraser University of Burnaby, British Columbia.
“We are a young team, but that is not to say we are inexperienced,’’ Wegrich said. “I think we have the most depth that Cal Poly’s had in many years. We’re deep at every position, meaning that we’ve got competition at each position.’’
The Broncos lost four seniors to graduation. OH Elizabeth Diaz and S Jasmine Davis each earned All-CCAA honors and L Audrey Driscoll completed her four-year career ranked among the top 10 in career digs.
The Broncos have two seniors -- OH Courtney Alberi (Castaic 178 kills/81 errors/548 attacks) -- .177), who recently underwent shoulder surgery and will be unable to compete this season and MB/RS Kellie Hall (Covina 66 kills/43 errors/181 attacks) -- .127) who played in 21 matches and 50 games last season.
Two-year veterans RS Kristen McNeese (Torrance) and OH/L Karissa Lagmay (Burbank) were regulars in Wegrich’s rotation last year and will be counted on for big things in 2010. McNeese was second on the team in kills in 2009 (238) and attacks (636) in 100 of the team’s 111 games. Lagmay was fourth on the team in digs (173).
The only other junior on the team is OH/RS Ashley Marshman (Glendora), who served a redshirt season last year after transferring from Pasadena City College).
The sophomores were granted a baptism of fire of sorts and all benefited from that experience. Leading the way was MB Lindsey Poulos (Los Altos), who had a standout season for the Broncos. She led the team in attack percentage (.265 – 184/66/446) and was one of the conference’s top freshman blockers with 88 total blocks and an average of 0.91 blocks/game.
Right beside Poulos was the play of MB Taylr Kreutziger, who saw action in 91 games. The Villa Park native was fifth on the team in kills (132) and finished with a .244 attack percentage. She was consistent on the block with 65 total blocks and 0.71 b/g.
L Kelly Bonja (San Dimas) is the team's leading digs returner after having a hand on 174 in 2009. She also had 15 service aces in 87 games.
OH Diana Lake (Covina) was a factor in 2009 with 71 kills in 58 games and had 79 digs with 12 block assists.
Libero Camille Bulot (Glendora – 61 digs) and S/OH Jamie Kidd (Bakersfield – eight games played) saw limited playing time as freshmen, but have played well during the preseason.
One redshirt freshman – MB/RS Sinead Palmer (Los Angeles) and four true freshmen S Katie Colin (Torrance), OH Jessica Doerner (Redondo Beach), S Leeanne Currie (Artesia) and L Erin Noriega (Glendora) complete the 16-member roster.
The Broncos open their nonconference season in style with four matches in three days – all within the confines of Darlene May Gym. They’ll face NCAA West Region opponents Academy of Arts and Dixie State on Friday and conclude the tourney with a match against Northwood (Mich.) on Saturday night.
One need not look any further than last year’s CCAA standings to have a clearer understanding on how difficult the league is. Each of the six teams that finished ahead of CPP in the standings gained an NCAA Tournament berth, led by perennial favorite Cal State San Bernardino, which went on to finish as an NCAA Elite Eight semifinalist.
The Broncos open CCAA play on Sept. 10 when they play host to San Francisco State, which reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the sport was reinstated at SFSU in 2008.
Broncos selected sixth in CCAA preseason poll
NCAA semi-finalist Cal State San Bernardino received the maximum number of votes possible and was tabbed as the conference coaches’ pick to capture the 2010 California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) title.
The Coyotes, winners of four straight CCAA titles and seven overall since 2001, totaled 121 points and 11 first-place votes. UC San Diego, which placed second a year ago, finished second in the poll after collecting 103 points and one first-place vote. Cal State L.A. was third with 98 points, Sonoma State was fourth after garnering 97 points and Chico State rounded out the top five with 82 points.
Cal Poly Pomona (63) was picked sixth and followed by San Francisco State (61), Cal State East Bay (55) and Cal State Monterey Bay (36). Humboldt State and Cal State Dominguez Hills tied for 10th with 23 points and Cal State Stanislaus was 12th after collecting 22 points.