LEXINGTON, Va. - The Old Dominion Athletic Conference has announced the seeds for the women's volleyball tournament and Washington and Lee University is the fourth seed.
The Generals finished the regular season with a 19-10 overall record, posting an 8-4 mark in conference play. The Blue and White locked up the fourth seed in the ODAC Tournament on Oct. 31 as they swept Roanoke College.
Virginia Wesleyan (26-5, 13-0 ODAC), who was picked to finish second in the preseason poll, claimed the top-seed as they went undefeated in conference play. Randolph-Macon (17-9, 10-2 ODAC) is the second seed while Bridgewater College (24-6, 11-3 ODAC), the three seed, is one spot ahead of the Blue and White.
Roanoke (15-12, 7-5 ODAC) earned the fifth seed while Averett (13-16, 7-5 ODAC), Lynchburg (11-12, 6-6 ODAC) and Guilford (18-8, 6-6 ODAC) round out the top-eight teams. Washington and Lee went 3-4 during the regular season against the seven other teams that qualified for the tournament.
As the fifth seed, the Maroons will travel to Lexington for the quarterfinals in a rematch of a regular season contest that the Generals won in straight sets just a week ago. During that match, Grace Mitchener led the Generals offense with 18 kills on 43 attempts for a .372 hitting percentage. Maddie Weller dug out a team-high 12 attacks while notching two service aces.
On the court, sophomore Riley Debiec leads the team in kills (288), kills per set (3.16) and total attempts (796). She ranks fourth in the ODAC in kills per set, eighth in total kills and 13th in hitting percentage (.241). Junior Allie Buchholz has been the primary setter for the Generals this season, she has dished out a team-high 893 assists while leading the team in service aces (34) and digs (337). McKenna Cook ranks second behind Buchholz with 33 service aces and leads W&L in service aces per set (0.40).
First-year libero Vivi Vasquez has recorded 294 digs this season while posting a career-high 40 digs in the Generals' five-set match against Eastern (Pa.) on Oct. 28. Vasquez leads the Generals in digs per set with 5.45. As a team, the Blue and White lead the ODAC and rank ninth in Division III in digs per set with 19.58. Overall, the Generals have dug out 1,958 attacks in their 100 sets played this season. W&L ranks third in the conference in blocks per set (1.80) and fourth in the conference in hitting percentage (.191), assists per set (11.15) and kills per set (11.82).
Senior Sydney Heifner reached two career milestones this season, surpassing 1,000 career kills in the Generals' 3-0 win over Eastern Mennonite University on Sept. 12 while surpassing 1,000 career digs in a straight-sets win over Averett on Oct. 14. Heifner is the seventh player in program history to have topped both milestones. Buchholz eclipsed 1,000 career assists after posting a career-high 51 in a five-set loss to Eastern (Pa.).
Head Coach Bryan Snyder reached a career milestone as well this season as the Generals notched his 600th win at W&L in a five-set thriller against Marymount on Sept. 9. Snyder has been at the helm since 2000 and has posted a record of 612-201 at W&L with a .753 winning percentage. In his 26 seasons as an NCAA Division III head coach, he has amassed a 653-226 record while claiming 11 ODAC Coach of the Year awards and 14 ODAC Championships. Snyder ranks 12th in career wins for active Division III head coaches while being the winningest head coach in W&L history.
The chase for the program's 19th ODAC title begins tonight at 7 p.m. inside Holekamp Gym as the Generals take on the Roanoke College Maroons. Live Stats and
Video will be available, for full tournament information, click
HERE.
Women's Volleyball Tournament Schedule
Quarterfinals | Tuesday, November 7, 2023 | at Seeds 1-4
Game 1: #8 Guilford College at #1 Virginia Wesleyan | 6:30 p.m.
Game 2: #5 Roanoke College at #4 Washington and Lee | 7 p.m.
Game 3: #6 Averett College at #3 Bridgewater College | 7 p.m.
Game 4: #7 University of Lynchburg at #2 Randolph-Macon College | 7 p.m.
Semifinals | Thursday, November 9, 2023 | at Highest Remaining Seed
Game 5: Winner Match 1 vs Winner Match 2 | TBA
Game 6: Winner Match 3 vs Winner Match 4 | TBA
Semifinals | Saturday, November 11, 2023 | at Highest Remaining Seed
Game 7: Winner Match 5 vs Winner Match 6 | TBA
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
