The UMBC volleyball squad opens the 2021 campaign with a trip to the Sunshine State. The Retrievers will compete in the FGCU Tournament in Fort Myers, Fla. on Fri.-Sat., Aug. 27-28 and head southeast to play at Miami (Fla.) on Sun., Aug. 29.

The defending America East Conference champions open up versus host Florida Gulf Coast on Friday at 11 a.m., then face South Florida (10:00 a.m.) and Rutgers (2:30 p.m.) on Saturday. All of the games take place at Alico Arena.

The Retrievers then take on the Hurricanes on Sunday at James L. Knight Sports Complex with the first serve occurring at 3:00 p.m.

(WHAT A) YEAR IN REVIEW

·       Selected a distant fifth in the America East preseason polls, Cristina Robertson's Retriever squad won 9-of-12 conference matches to earn a spot as the visitor in the championship match at UAlbany. UMBC won a thrilling five-set affair to capture their first-ever America East title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in school history.

·       Graduate student libero Loren Teter (Redondo Beach, Calif.) was named to the All-Championship Team after picking up a match and career-high 33 digs. Current sophomore Michela De Marzi (Milan, Italy) was also named to the All-Championship Team.

·       Of UMBC's returning players, rising sophomore Aysia Miller (Mililani, Hawaii) was voted Setter of the Year, becoming the second Retriever to ever earn the award. Rising junior Emily Ferketic (Pittsburgh, Pa.) was Top-10 in the conference in blocks and earned a spot on the All-Academic Team 

·       UMBC dropped a 3-0 decision to No. 20 Pepperdine in Omaha, Neb., but the final two sets were extremely tight at 25-22 and 26-24.

·       Head Coach Cristina Robertson was selected as the American Volleyball Coaches Association East Coast Region Coach of the Year and her staff earned America East Conference Staff of the Year.

·       UMBC earned a spot on the American Volleyball Coaches Association Team Academic Honor Roll for the first time ever. The Retrievers finished with a team GPA of 3.71 in the spring semester. 

THE TITLE DEFENSE

·       UMBC was one of the nation's youngest teams in 2020-21 and nine of 11 letterwinners return for this fall's campaign. But, Coach Robertson and her staff have brought in five freshman and a pair of transfers as the Retrievers prepare for a tough 2021 conference race.

·       The Retrievers were picked behind UAlbany and alongside New Hampshire in the 2021 America East preseason poll. The Great Danes earned four of seven first-place votes and amassed 33 points, while UMBC and UNH each tallied 27 and one first-place vote apiece. Stony Brook (25 points) earned the other first-place vote.

 ·       After a 15-match non-conference slate, the Retrievers open their title defense versus Stony Brook on Sat., Sept. 25. The contest will be played on UMBC's newly-renamed Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena court at 1:00 p.m.

·       The Retrievers played all five of their home matches in the spring of 2021 in the arena's auxiliary gymnasium, with no fans permitted to attend.

LEADERS OF THE PACK (2020-21 stat leaders, returning players)

·       Digs – Loren Teter (4.35/set, 4th in America East)

·       Kills – Kamani Conteh (2.23/set), Michela De Marzi (2.16/set)

·       Assists – Aysia Miller (10.65/set, 2nd in America East)

·       Blocks – Beste Ayhan (1.04/set, 2nd in America East)

·       Hitting Pct. – Michela De Marzi (36.4, 1st in America East)

 THIS WEEKEND'S FOES]

·       FGCU – The Eagles were tabbed to repeat as Atlantic Sun champions in the preseason coaches' poll. FGCU posted a 14-3 record in the spring, but lost a heartbreaking 3-2 decision to Lipscomb in the ASUN title game. Junior OH Erin Shomaker has been named the ASUN's preseason Player of the Year, while senior Chelsey Lockey earned preseason Setter of the Year honors.  

·       South Florida – The Bulls have been voted to finish seventh in the 2021 American Athletic Conference standings by the preseason coaches' poll. Sophomore OH Marta Cvitkovic was a unanimous selection to the Preseason All-Conference Team. South Florida posted a mark of 6-8 in the spring.

·       Rutgers – The Scarlet Knights posted a record of 6-14 in the spring and all of their matches were Big Ten affairs. RU did close the season with four straight wins, sweeping a pair each from Maryland and Michigan State. Fifth-year RS Beka Kojadinovic topped the 2020-21 squad with 211 kills

·       Miami  - The Hurricanes won 11 of 18 contests in the spring and were 9-7 in ACC play. Junior setter Savannah Vach earned Second Team All-ACC honors in 2020-21. She led Miami in assists for the second-straight season with 657 assists and ranks sixth in Miami history with 1,703 career assists.

 UP NEXT

·       UMBC catches its collective breath, before heading out on Wednesday for the Cowtown Classic in Fort Worth, Texas on Sept. 2-3. UMBC takes on UT-Rio Grande Valley, Nicholls State and host TCU in the Lone Star State.