Volleyball Ranks Second in AVCA/TARAFLEX Preseason National Poll

The Hope College volleyball team is starting the 2024 season in the same spot in the national rankings where the Flying Dutch left off last season.

The Flying Dutch finished second in the American Volleyball Coaches Association/TARAFLEX NCAA Division III Preseason Poll. In 2023, Hope was the national runner-up after a 32-3 season.

Hope totaled 2,019 points and trailed only two-time defending national champion Juniata College (Pennsylvania). Juniata was a unanimous favorite with 86 first-place votes and 2,150 points.

The Flying Dutch will host Juniata in the home opener on Friday, Sept. 13, at 6:30 p.m. at Richard and Helen DeVos Fieldhouse. Hope lost to Juniata in three sets in the 2023 national championship match in Claremont, California.

Individual tickets and family passes for the volleyball season can be ordered through the Hope Ticket Office at 100 East Eighth St.: online, in person, or by calling (616) 395-7890.

Hope is led by head coach Becky Schmidt and returning AVCA Co-National Player of the Year Addie VanderWeide (Grand Rapids, Michigan / Grand Rapids Christian HS).

The rest of the AVCA/TARAFLEX Top 5 featured Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (California) in third, Johns Hopkins University (Maryland) in fourth, and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in fifth.

Earlier this month, the Flying Dutch topped the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll as a unanimous favorite.

Hope opens the season on Friday-Saturday, Aug. 30-31, at The University of Northwestern (Minnesota) Aces of Joy Tournament.

The Flying Dutch face seventh-ranked Northwestern on Friday at 7 p.m. Central.

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Players Mentioned

#22 Addie VanderWeide: OH; 6' 1"; Senior; Business

Players Mentioned

#22 Addie VanderWeide
: 6' 1"; Senior; Business
: OH

Players Mentioned

#22 Addie VanderWeide

Players Mentioned

#22 Addie VanderWeide