2019 Schedule | Ranking Release
 
ITHACA, N.Y. – In just three days' time, the Ithaca College women's volleyball program will tip-off its 51^st season of varsity volleyball on South Hill with the two-day Bomber Invitational inside Ben Light Gymnasium. For the past 10 days, the 2019 installment of the Bombers has been putting in relentless work through practices, strength and conditioning sessions, as well as tactical meetings in the always condensed preseason. The goal for IC is to translate the hard work into results when play gets underway shortly after 3:00 p.m. on Friday afternoon.
 
"I think that this has been a tougher preseason for us than in past years both physically and mentally, but I think that our team has really handled it well," Dulfer said. "I was encouraged with the energy and the condition in which our players brought back to campus and it has been a very hopeful start to the season."
 
The Ithaca name has been synonymous with the elite programs in NCAA Division III women's volleyball for much of head coach Johan Dulfer's tenure with the program. Dulfer enters his fourth year on South Hill with another dynamic squad that looks poised to once again be in contention for a deep season run. One of just two programs, along with Calvin College, to advance to the season's final weekend in each of the past two years, the Bombers enter the 2019 campaign with a rank of 11^th in the Preseason American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top-25 Poll. With a talented group of 10 returners and another strong crop of five newcomers, IC hopes to take that final step and raise some trophy hardware this coming fall.
 
"I think we have a lot of returning players who know what it takes to compete at the level we are striving to compete at," Dulfer explained. "I think we have a lot players emerging as leaders and it is nice to know, as a coach, that we have a group that is going to have the opportunity to grow together as a team as this season continues."
 
It has been an encouraging preseason thus far for the program. Although the Bombers will need to find answers for several key departing players, Dulfer has been enthusiastic about not just the raw athletic ability, but also the high volleyball IQ that the 2019 group has shown since returning to campus 10 days ago. Preseason workouts have been spirited and the energy-level on the court has been through the roof. A pair of preseason scrimmages have also brought significant optimism to the coaching staff about not just where the team is at currently, but would it could achieve as the season develops over the next three months.
 
"I think the thing that has stood out most about our team so far this season has been our ability to diversify the way we play," Dulfer explained. "Everyone brings a little bit something different to the court and it really has allowed us to attack the game in varying ways. I think this group sees the game incredibly well. We have the potential to be more diverse on offense and very exciting to watch on defense."
 
Not only have there been many new faces in new roles this fall, but there are also several new additions to the IC coaching staff. The 2019 season will mark Dulfer's most broad-ranging coaching staff in his professional career as a head coach. Joining IC's staff for this season are new assistant coaches Jennifer Buckman and Regan Herrington, while Rachel Ford remains on staff for a second season on South Hill. Buckman arrives from Transylvania University, while Herrington hails from north of the border after finishing up her undergraduate work at Acadia University in Nova Scotia, Canada. Additionally, IC will also have 2018-graduate and standout libero, Tara Stilwell, stay involved with the program in an interesting part-time role, while she completes her graduate-school coursework in Applied Psychology. Such a large staff has allowed the program to attack this preseason differently compared to the past three seasons and certainly has brought and added edge to the team's preparation.
 
"I am really excited about the coaching staff we have been able to put together this year," Dulfer exclaimed. "They have really hit the ground running with recruiting this summer and meshing well with our players during camp and now with preseason. Having four of us, each specializing in different positions, I think it has really allowed us to open things up in ways we have not been able to previously and it just has been an incredible group to work with."
 
The 2019 schedule once again shapes up to be one of the most challenging gauntlets in the country; however, the upcoming slate looks to be more well-balanced compared to the 2018 campaign. Ithaca has six matches against teams that appeared in the AVCA Preseason Top-25 Poll, beginning with an opening-weekend tilt against No. 19 Berry at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, August 30. Other ranked opponents include: No. 2 Calvin (10/18), No. 3 Juniata (9/6), No. 8 Johnson & Wales (11/1), No. 12 Wesleyan (11/2), and No. 22 Hope (10/18). IC also faces four programs that received votes in the poll in Carnegie Mellon, Susquehanna, Johns Hopkins, and RIT. Notably, IC's matchup against No. 19 Berry on the opening day of the season is the only one of those tilts to occur on its home court inside Ben Light Gymnasium. The schedule figures to present some unique challenges throughout the season.
 
"I really believe that the group we have this year is ready for more challenges and I think our schedule really lines up for that," Dulfer said. "We have significant matches on our schedule throughout the season, with some big tests in the beginning, middle and end of the year. I think that top-to-bottom the Liberty League schedule is going to be strong this season with some opportunities to get recognition from the committee later in the season. I did not think it was possible, but I definitely feel like we upgraded the schedule this season."
 
The following is a position-by-position breakdown of what to look for from the Bombers this season.
 
Defensive Specialist/Libero
Despite the graduation of one of the program's best-ever libero's in Tara Stilwell, the backline defense has been an area of great optimism for the program heading into the season. The coaching staff is bullish that this position group might be the difference in putting the Bombers over the top this fall. Brimming with athleticism and talent, IC certainly looks to have the ability to be a tough team to score on.
 
Headlining the list of returning players in the position group is sophomore Jordyn Lyn Hayashi who is back for her second season in the Ithaca uniform. The Hilo, Hawaii, native made an immediate impact in Ithaca's rotation last fall, appearing in all 29 matches for the Bombers in 2018. She recorded seven double-digit dig outings on the year, totaling 216 digs for the season. Hayashi also turned into one of the Bombers biggest serving threats as the season entered the latter stages, as she finished with 26 aces on the year. Although just in her second collegiate season, Hayashi has stepped into a leadership role in the youthful IC backline and seems primed for a breakout year.
 
Two newcomers also join the ranks of IC's primary passers in 2019 in Hannah Hughes and Grace Isaksen. The influx of talent brought in by this rookie duo has been considerable and expect both to see significant action this fall.
 
Hughes arrives to South Hill from Superior, Wisconsin, where she was a standout for both her high school and club volleyball programs. She collected a litany of athletics accomplishments during her time at Superior, holding the program's all-time career record for digs with 1,884 in just three seasons as a starter. She led the Minnesota-Wisconsin region in digs as a junior, while she helped the Minnesota North Volleyball Club to a fifth-place showing at the AAU National Championships prior to her senior high school season.
 
Grace Isaksen is a name IC fans should be excited about. She brings a lengthy list of prep accomplishments during her time at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake and looks to be the next in line of talented backline players from the Capital Region. Serving as libero, she helped her high school program to three consecutive Final Four appearances at the New York State Championships during her career, while she captured First Team All-State honors following her senior campaign. 
 
Setter
The setting position is an area that IC fans can be quite confident in heading into the season. All three of Ithaca's setters from last season return in 2019 in standout senior Caitlyn Floyd, junior Delaney Runyon, and sophomore Laura Severance. All three players saw action a season ago and make up one of the deeper position groups on the squad this coming fall.
 
Headlining the group is Floyd, who is back for her final collegiate season on South Hill. The IC attack hummed like a well-oiled machine through the dynamite distribution of Floyd during the 2018 campaign, which was her second year as the team's primary setter in the 5-1 rotation look. With a full grasp of IC's attacking system, she amassed 1,000-plus assists for a second straight year, totaling 1,149 in just 107 total sets played. Floyd also set career highs for kills (84), aces (33), and total blocks (41). She not only repeated as an All-Liberty League First Team honoree, but also garnered recognition on the regional and national stages as well. The Mahwah, N.J., native capped the year with AVCA All-Region First Team honors and was named an AVCA Third Team All-American at the season's conclusion. Floyd enters the year ranked fifth on the program's all-time assists list with 2,942 for her career. While the top two slots on the list figure to be slightly out of reach, do not be surprised to see her rise as high as third on the list, as another 1000-plus assist campaign will see her pass both Laurie Roberts '93 (3,774) and Jill Finochio '98 (3,925).
 
Runyon is the other upperclassman in the unit. She held down a serving specialist role last season, possessing one of the team's hardest and most lethal deliveries from the end line. She appeared in 27 matches and 92 total sets during her sophomore season. The Laguna Hills, California, native tallied 22 aces in 2018, which ranks fourth-most among the teams returners. Defensively, she registered 24 digs in 2018.
 
Severance saw more limited action during her debut campaign in 2018, but still managed to crack the lineup in 11 matches throughout the course of the season. She registered six assists during her first year with the program, serving more as a defensive complement in the back row. She finished the season with 33 digs to her credit.
 
Middle Hitter/Middle Blocker
If there is one area that has the most uncertainty for the Bombers heading into the 2019 season it is certainly in the middle. Gone from the group are a trio of 2018-graduates in Amanda Cerruti '19, Katie Evans '19, and Ruby Dyson '19. That group had accounted for the majority of the action in the middle during Dulfur's tenure with the program, but the program still has some intriguing talent ready to make its impact felt this fall.
 
Two student-athletes return this fall in junior Katie Basey and sophomore Monet Peoples. Both saw significant action last fall when Cerruti missed the majority of the regular-season with a foot injury and will look to grow into leadership roles in the middle this fall.
 
Basey is set to enter her third year with the program in 2019. She appeared in 34 sets last fall, registering 23 kills, two solo blocks, and 12 block assists in match action. Standing at 6-foot-3-inches tall, she is Ithaca's most imposing presence in the middle and will look to translate her measurables into more consistent production this fall.
 
As can be expected for most first-year players, the 2018 campaign brought with it a bit of a learning curve for Peoples. She posted a very similar stat line to her returning teammate, amassing 25 kills, two solo blocks and 20 block assists in 33 sets of action. Her raw talent certainly shined through in IC's first match without Cerruti a season ago, as she marked seven blocks in a win over a talented Susquehanna outfit.
 
Now with the depth chart in the middle wide-open, look for Basey and Peoples to be breakout candidates for this year.
 
Joining the group is one of the most talented middles in the Mid-Atlantic region in first-year Jennifer Pitts. The six-foot tall native of McMurray, Pennsylvania, just outside of Pittsburgh was a star during her prep career at Seton LaSalle High School. She was a four-year starter for the Rebels, helping the program to two Section Titles during her career. She was a three-time WPIAL Class 2A Section 4 First Team honoree during her final three years, while she went on to earn PIAA Class 2A All-State honors during her junior and senior campaigns. Expect Pitts to make an immediate impact for the Bombers this season.
 
Outside Hitter/Right Side Hitter
The attacking at the pins is an area that Ithaca should be extremely excited about heading into the 2019 season. The program is loaded with options on the outside, bringing back a wealth of incredible talent and welcoming in a pair of promising new prospects that should bolster the unit to perhaps its greatest depth and talent-level in the Dulfer tenure at IC.
 
The conversation on the outside certainly begins with the return of the team's scintillating right-side Reagan Stone. The third-year player is coming off a phenomenal 2018 season in which she set new career highs across the board with 475 kills, 4.44 kills per set, 232 digs, and a team-best 45 service aces. Her trophy mantle continued to grow exponentially, as she was named Liberty League Player of the Year in addition to earning All-Liberty League First Team and AVCA All-Region First Team praise. Stone capped the season by being named an AVCA Second Team All-American, becoming the first outside hitter since Julia Roth to attain Second Team All-America honors. She entered this preseason motivated to pick up where she left off last season and figures to once-again shoulder a big load for the Bombers from the right pin and service line this fall.
 
Joining Stone as an upperclassman on the outside is her classmate Sarah Jennison. The Clinton, N.J., native appeared in 47 sets for the Bombers during her sophomore campaign last fall, finishing with 75 kills and 43 digs. She has been a source of infectious energy for the team throughout her first two years on South Hill and figures to continue bringing that change of pace on the opposite pin during her junior season.
 
IC also brings back two members of the sophomore class on the outside in Alison Lipton and Jaelyn Hershberger.
 
Lipton was an immediate starter for the Bombers last fall, completing the season with 77 total sets played. She marked 156 kills during the year, one of just two returning players along with Stone to eclipse the century mark last season. Defensively, she provided 71 digs and 13 block assists. She also was a threat from the service line with nine aces in limited action. Look for Lipton to again play a key role in an attacking position opposite of Stone this fall.
 
Hershberger also brings significant experience from her rookie campaign. She appeared in 53 sets and 22 matches in her 2018 debut season, racking up 70 kills and 31 digs. She also tallied three solo blocks and nine block assists. Although she has been held out of action with an injury this preseason, her leadership and volleyball IQ has certainly proven beneficial to the squad.
 
Adding to the wealth of talent at the pins is the infusion of first-year players Camryn O'Leary and Noemi Talton. Both players have already made an impression with their dynamic athleticism and powerful swings this preseason and figure to both see considerable time this fall.
 
O'Leary hails from Sugar Land, Texas, where she starred for Fort Bend Christian and Club Catalyst during her prep career. She capped her career at Sugar Land with All-Conference First Team and All-State Second Team honors in helping the program to Conference and Sectional Championships. In the club volleyball ranks, she helped Catalyst to the Quarterfinal Round of the AAU National Championships en route to earning AAU All-American honors at the national tournament.
 
Talton arrives to Ithaca from DeLand, Florida, where she starred for the high school program. She earned All-Area honors during all three of her letter-winning seasons for DeLand, while she played a focal role in helping the team to strong finishes at both the District and Regional level.
 
Looking Ahead
No. 11 Ithaca opens the season on Friday, August 30, when it plays host to the opening day of the 2019 Bomber Invitational. The first day features a doubleheader for IC, which will open play at 3:00 p.m. against Ohio Wesleyan, before closing out first-day action in the 7:00 p.m. feature match against No. 19 Berry. Ithaca caps the two-day event the following afternoon with a 4:00 p.m. clash against Wisconsin-La Crosse.