INDIANAPOLIS – Lewis was voted in the preseason coaches’ poll as the choice to win the 2025 Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) women's volleyball title, the league office announced on Monday.
The preseason poll is selected by the league’s head coaches, who, per GLVC Bylaws, are not permitted to vote for their own team.
No. 1 Lewis
- Received five first-place votes and 152 total points.
- The Flyers finished with a 23-11 overall record and 10-3 GLVC mark, winning their fourth-straight and 14th overall GLVC title in program history last year as the No. 3 seed at the Championship Tournament, extending their streak of consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances since 2006.
- Five-time GLVC Coach of the Year Lorelee Smith is back for her 19th season on the sideline leading the Flyers, sporting a 510-131 overall record and 253-34 GLVC mark.
- Lewis returns 13 players from last year’s team, led by junior outside hitter Lauren Buxton, junior setter Lily King, and redshirt-junior setter Rachel Kaczorowski.
- Buxton notched 215 kills last season, including 37 during the GLVC Tournament.
- King and Kaczorowski combined to account for 1,275 of the team’s 1,552 assists, while Kaczorowski also led the squad in aces (42).
No. 2 Quincy
- Received four first-place votes and 150 total points.
- Quincy recorded a 25-6 overall record and 11-2 Conference mark to earn the No. 1 seed in the GLVC Championship Tournament and its third consecutive berth in the NCAA Tournament.
- 2025 will be Mark Jones’ seventh campaign mentoring the Hawks, carrying a 125-52 mark into the season.
- The Hawks bring back a pair of First Team All-GLVC players in sophomore setter Elena Kasavica and junior outside hitter Susanna Beretti, along with 2023 AVCA Third Team All-American Alice Pavan.
- Kasavica paced the league in assists (1392), aces (54), and aces per set (0.46).
- Beretti finished second in the conference for kills (478) and points (531), while also landing top five in aces (44) and points per set (4.50).
- Pavan – who missed the 2024 season due to injury – placed top 10 in multiple GLVC categories in 2023, ranking second in hitting percentage (.416); third in blocks (120); and eighth in points per set (3.91).
No. 3 Rockhurst
- Received two first-place votes and 147 total points.
- The Hawks earned the No. 4 seed at the GLVC Championship Tournament and made their 10th-straight NCAA Tournament appearance, finishing the season with a 21-8 record overall and 10-3 league mark.
- Trent Jones enters his sixth season at the helm of Rockhurst, holding a 95-43 career mark.
- The Hawks return two Second Team All-GLVC front row players from last season: senior Sarah Pyle and junior Ali Olson.
- Pyle finished third in the league for aces per set (0.41) and aces (46), along with placing second on the team in kills (319).
- Olson led Rockhurst in solo blocks (13) and blocks (93), as well as contributing 136 kills with a .327 hitting percentage.
No. 4 Missouri-St. Louis
- Received two first-place votes and 139 total points.
- UMSL is coming off a 19-9 season overall and 8-5 conference record to claim the No. 6 seed in the GLVC Championship Tournament and fifth consecutive berth in the NCAA Tournament.
- Three-time GLVC Coach of the Year Ryan Young heads into his 15th campaign leading the Tritons, holding a 283-141 overall record and 158-74 league mark.
- UMSL returns all five All-GLVC players from last year in setter Caitlin Bishop, libero Skylar Weaver, and attackers Alayna Santel, Hannah Copeland, and Iyannah Jackson.
- Bishop, the 2023 GLVC Player of the Year, led the conference and finished third in Division II for assists per set (12.12).
- Weaver was fourth in the league for digs (545) and digs per set (5.14).
- Santel, the 2024 AVCA Midwest Region and GLVC Freshman of the Year, placed eighth in the conference for kills (377) and 10th in kills per set (3.56).
- Copeland (.339) and Jackson (.305) landed second and fourth in the league for hitting percentage, respectively.
Rounding out the poll respectively in fifth through 14th was Maryville (136 points, one first-place vote), Indianapolis (104), Illinois Springfield (84), McKendree (82), Drury (73), Missouri S&T (71), Truman State (47), Upper Iowa (37), Southwest Baptist (34), and William Jewell (18).
The complete poll and voting results can be found below.
2025 GLVC WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL PRESEASON POLL
| Place |
School |
Points (1st-Place Votes) |
| 1. |
Lewis |
152 (5) |
| 2. |
Quincy |
150 (4) |
| 3. |
Rockhurst |
147 (2) |
| 4. |
Missouri-St. Louis |
139 (2) |
| 5. |
Maryville |
136 (1) |
| 6. |
Indianapolis |
104 |
| 7. |
Illinois Springfield |
84 |
| 8. |
McKendree |
82 |
| 9. |
Drury |
73 |
| 10. |
Missouri S&T |
71 |
| 11. |
Truman State |
47 |
| 12. |
Upper Iowa |
37 |
| 13. |
Southwest Baptist |
34 |
| 14. |
William Jewell |
18 |