Utah tabbed to win MWC volleyball title

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Defending league champion Utah is once again the favorite to win the Mountain West Conference volleyball title in a vote by the conference head coaches and selected media.

The Utes collected eight first-place votes and 138 total points. Colorado State was a close second with 135 points and four first-place votes, while New Mexico (three first-place votes) was picked third, totaling 112 points. BYU collected 96 points and two first-place nods for fourth place in the poll, while TCU (89 points) and UNLV (87 points) claimed fifth and sixth place, respectively, followed by San Diego State (seventh, 53 points), Wyoming (eighth, 38 points) and Air Force (ninth, 17 points).

MWC all-Conference performers Tessa Nelson (Colorado State) and Jade Michaelsen (New Mexico) highlight the preseason all-Mountain West Conference team, as they were tabbed the preseason MWC Co-Players of the Year. Six teams were represented on the 2009 preseason all-MWC squad, which also was chosen by the coaches and selected media.

The 2009 season will feature seven returning all-Mountain West Conference players, including 2008 Freshman of the Year Cursty Jackson (UNLV). Last season, Jackson tallied the conference's highest freshman ranking in hitting percentage in overall and conference matches (.264 and .236, respectively), kills per set in overall and conference matches (2.55 and 2.72, respectively), and points per set in overall and league play (3.06 and 3.24, respectively).

Kayla Walker (Sr., RS) returns for BYU, while Tessa Nelson (R-Sr., MB) will be back at Colorado State and Jade Michaelsen returns to New Mexico. Walker was third in the league in kills per set (3.24) in conference matches, while also finishing fourth in points per set (3.92) in conference play. Nelson ranked in the top-10 in blocks per set (6th, 1.16) and hitting percentage (9th, .312) in the league rankings, while Michaelsen finished second in assists per set (10.92).

San Diego State's Lauren Salisbury, TCU's Christy Hudson and Utah's Karolina Bartkowiak round out the returnee list. Salisbury ranked fourth in points per set (3.65), fifth in hitting percentage (.344) and 10th in kills per set (2.88) in overall matches last season. Hudson finished third in hitting percentage (.353) in overall matches, while Bartkowiak was second in hitting percentage (.354) in overall contests.

The 2009 season is set to begin Aug. 28, with all nine league teams in action. Conference play begins Sept. 16, with New Mexico hosting TCU.