[cid:image001.jpg@01D8B243.4AC75500]FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE College of Charleston Volleyball News August 17, 2022 Contact | Whitney Noble, Associate Director of Athletics Communications & Creative Content Office Phone | 843.953.3683 | E-Mail | [log in to unmask] COUGARS TABBED THIRD IN COACHES’ POLL, WIERZBICKI COLLECTS PRESEASON ALL-CAA HONORS RICHMOND, Va. --- The College of Charleston volleyball team was picked to finish third in the race for the 2022 Colonial Athletic Association regular season championship while senior Lexi Wierzbicki garnered Preseason All-CAA recognition, as announced Wednesday by the league office. Charleston received the third-most votes in the poll of the league's 11 head coaches with one first-place vote. Defending champion and preseason favorite Towson tops the poll with seven first-place votes and 96 points followed by Elon (89, three first-place votes) and the Cougars (77). Delaware (68) and Hofstra (65) round out the preseason top five. The 2022 CAA Volleyball Championships are set for Nov. 17-19 at SECU Arena on the campus of Towson. A native of Easley, S.C., Wierzbicki was named to the All-CAA First Team in 2021 posting 3.03 kills per set and setting a new single-match career high of 23 kills at Delaware on Oct. 24. The preseason accolade is the third overall for Wierzbicki after she was named Player of the Week on Oct. 18 of last season prior to earning an All-CAA nod. The senior outside hitter has paced the Cougars in both kills and kills per set in each of the last two seasons while ranking amongst the top 10 in the CAA both years. The Cougars are scheduled to begin the 2022 season on Friday, August 26 when they host Fresno State on the first day of the CofC Invitational. First serve is slated for 12 p.m. at TD Arena. 2022 CAA Volleyball Preseason Team Fay Bakodimou, Towson Nina Cajic, Towson Haylie Clark, Elon Chiara Cucco, Hofstra Leah Daniel, Elon Lani Mason, Delaware Erica Staunton, Northeastern Lydia Wiers, Towson Lexi Wierzbicki, Charleston 2022 CAA Volleyball Preseason Poll 1. Towson (7) 96 2. Elon (3) 89 3. Charleston (1) 77 4. Delaware 68 5. Hofstra 65 6. Northeastern 64 7. North Carolina A&T 38 8. Stony Brook 34 UNCW 32 William & Mary 32 Hampton 10 -www.CofCSports.com- [signature_1676466727] ----- To unsubscribe, send a message to [log in to unmask] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE SPORTS as the body of the message.