NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Privateers have a core of eight returners off a squad that showed a big jump in the win column in 2022. The Privateers engineered the fifth-largest win improvement in NCAA Division I last season.
The 14-win improvement ranked fifth-best from 2021 to 2022 among all NCAA Div. I institutions.
"The returning class helped facilitate the 2022 turnaround and they have the knowledge of our culture that will be crucial for our team to come together to win," said Coach
Ashley Preston.
Rita Zecchin and
Micah Hall both have experience at libero and contributed to a team that had just over 17 digs per set in 2022. Zecchin recorded 2.87 digs per set and she was the Libero of the Tournament at the UNO Invitational. Hall had 115 digs in 59 sets during last season including four matches of double-digit digs.
Sydney Gott and
Courtney Roundtree return as middles. Gott earned All-Tournament honors at the UNO Invitational and was second on the team in total blocks with 58. Roundtree played 42 sets last year and was a big part of a record-setting performance. She contributed five of the team's 17 blocks in a win against Prairie View which set the season record for most rejections in a three-set match.
Chandler Lee,
Irene Kitson and
Molly Kehoe return as outside and right side hitters. Lee started 15 matches and had 139 kills as a true freshman last season. Kehoe recorded 30 kills in the first two matches of the season last year. Kitson had two matches of six total blocks against Prairie View and UIW.
Claire Turner is the lone returning setter from last year's squad. Turner played in 90 sets and had a match-high 35 assists against UIW while splitting time at the spot last season.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow
@PrivateersVB on Twitter,
@PrivateersVB on Instagram, like
/PrivateersVB on Facebook and subscribe to the
PrivateerAthletics YouTube channel.
