Aug. 15, 2018
As the San José State volleyball team begins the second week of practice, the Mountain West Conference has announced the 2018 Preseason Poll and Preseason Team.
The Spartans are picked to finish sixth in the preseason poll after finishing the 2017 season with a 17-12 overall record and 9-9 MW mark. The team finished fifth in the standings, the best since joining the conference in 2013.
Defending champion Colorado State is selected to repeat, followed by Wyoming, Boise State and San Diego State and New Mexico.
2018 Mountain West Preseason Poll
1. Colorado State (10) 100
2. Wyoming (1) 91
3. Boise State 75
3. San Diego State 75
5. New Mexico 59
6. San José State 56
7. Fresno State 39
8. Air Force 31
8. Utah State 31
10. Nevada 25
11. UNLV 23
One of the top returners for San José State is libero Luiza Andrade who has been selected to the Mountain West Preseason Team, becoming the first Spartan to receive this honor in six years.
Andrade begins the season ranked fourth all-time in digs with 1,155 at San José State. She is the eighth player to record 1,000 career digs in school history. The starting libero each of the past two seasons, she averaged 3.96 digs per set and 0.36 service aces per set last season. Andrade recorded 20 or more digs in six matches last year and had a career-best 37 digs against Cal State Fullerton in 2016.
2018 Mountain West Preseason Team
Sabryn Roberts, Sr., OH, Boise State
Kirstie Hillyer, R-Jr., MB, Colorado State
Paulina Hougaard-Jensen, Jr., MB, Colorado State
Katie Oleksak, Jr., S, Colorado State
Breana Runnels, R-So., OH, Colorado State
Deja Harris, Sr., MB, San Diego State
Luiza Andrade, Sr., L, San José State
MW Preseason Player of the Year: Katie Oleksak, Jr., S, Colorado State
The Spartans begin the 2018 season at the USF Invitational in Tampa, Fla., August 24 and 25. The team opens the season with two matches on the 24th - vs. South Florida (Head coach Jolene Shepardson's alma mater) at 11 a.m. ET/8 a.m. PT, and Stony Brook at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT. The Spartans finish on the 25th against Jacksonville at 11 a.m. ET/8 a.m. PT.
The team then debuts in the Bay Area with the annual Blue/Gold Exhibition on Saturday, September 1, inside Spartan Gym beginning at 2 p.m. Admission is free.
The Spartans first regular season home match will be against Wyoming on Thursday, September 20, at 6 p.m. It is also the team's first Mountain West match of 2018.
A change to this year's home matches - Admission will be charged for all regular season matches. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for youth 12 & under. SJSU students remain free with their Tower Card.