Saints volleyball garners the second spot in conference preseason poll
The Saints volleyball team has been picked to finish second in the 2022 Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) Volleyball Preseason Poll for the second year in a row. The Saints finished as runners-up last year in the conference tournament against conference champion Xavier University of Louisiana, picked three points ahead of the Saints for the top spot. The Gold Nuggets were picked first last year, as well.
OLLU went 20-5 overall in 2021 and suffered just one conference loss – to Xavier – 1-3 in late October. The two powerhouses met up in the championship match hosted by OLLU. The Saints lost the first set 22-25 and won the second one, 25-17. The Gold Nuggets won the third, 25-13, and the Saints tied it up for the fourth set, 25-22. Xavier prevailed to with the final set 15-4 to capture the tournament title and move on to the NAIA National Tournament. The Gold Nuggets lost their first match 0-3 to end their season with an overall 13-7 record and 10-1 in the conference.
Huston-Tillotson University placed third in the voting after a trip to the conference semis last year. The University of the Southwest, which is coming off a 7-5 conference season, finished in fourth place followed by Jarvis Christian University, Louisiana Christian University and Paul Quinn College. Texas A&M University-Texarkana, which is launching its new volleyball program this season, placed eighth, and Texas College was voted ninth.