Louisville Tops 2023 ACC Preseason Coaches Polls

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The University of Louisville was named as the preseason favorite to win the 2023 Atlantic Coast Conference Volleyball Championship for the second year in a row following a vote of the ACC's head coaches.

The Cardinals received eight first-place votes while Pitt garnered seven. The Panthers finished second in the voting with 189 points, just one point behind the Cardinals. Louisville and Pitt come into the 2023 season following their historic All-ACC match-up in the 2022 NCAA Semifinals after securing their spots as ACC Co-Champions with each recording 31 wins. The Cardinals led all schools with five student-athletes on the Preseason All-ACC Team with Anna DeBeer, Aiko Jones, Phekran Kong, Charitie Luper and Elena Scott.

Miami came in third with 161 points, followed by Florida State and Georgia Tech tied at fourth with 153 points. North Carolina earned 126 points and was picked sixth, while Duke (109 points), NC State (104), Wake Forest (82) and Notre Dame (77) rounded out the top 10. The Irish were followed by Clemson (73), Boston College (54), Virginia (42), Syracuse (40) and Virginia Tech (22).

Three teams earned spots in the final American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll following last season: Louisville at No. 2, Pitt at No. 4 and Georgia Tech at No. 16. The first AVCA poll of the 2023 season will be released later this month.

2023 Preseason Coaches Poll
Louisville, 190 (8)
Pitt, 189 (7)
Miami, 161
Florida State, 153
Georgia Tech, 153
North Carolina, 126
Duke, 109
NC State, 104
Wake Forest, 82
Notre Dame, 77
Clemson, 73
Boston College, 54
Virginia, 42
Syracuse, 40
Virginia Tech, 22

2023 Preseason Volleyball All-ACC Team
Mckenna Slavic, Clemson, Gr., S
Gracie Johnson, Duke, Gr., OH
Audrey Koenig, Florida State, Jr., OH
Khouri Louis, Florida State, Jr., MB
Bianca Bertolino, Georgia Tech, Jr., OH
Bella D'Amico, Georgia Tech, Jr., S
Anna DeBeer, Louisville, Sr., OH
Aiko Jones, Louisville, Gr., OPP
Phekran Kong, Louisville, Sr., MB
Charitie Luper, Louisville, Jr., OH
Elena Scott, Louisville, Jr., L/DS
Janice Leao, Miami, Gr., MB
Savannah Vach, Miami, Gr. S
Mabrey Shaffmaster, North Carolina, Jr., OH
Rachel Fairbanks, Pitt, Jr., S
Bre Kelley, Pitt, Jr., MB
Chiamaka Nwokolo, Pitt, Gr., MB
Valeria Vazquez Gomez, Pitt, Sr., OH

About the Cardinals
Anna DeBeer carried over her success from 2021 into the first part of the season. She was a dominant offensive presence throughout the non-conference schedule and recorded double-digit kills six times and had a season-high 19 kills hitting .390 against Ohio State. An injury in the match against Stanford caused her to miss nearly two months of the season. She returned to playing six rotations in the NCAA Tournament where she was named the All-Louisville Regional MVP and was named to the Final Four All-Tournament Team. Anna played 78 sets and recorded 176 kills (.261), 14 assists, 29 aces, 168 digs, and 32 blocks to score 223.0 points for the Cards. She had nine double-digit kill performances on the season and three double-doubles (10 K and 12 D vs. Purdue, 15 K and 13 D vs. Kentucky, and 17 K and 10 D vs. Oregon). Anna recorded a season-high five aces in the Tournament game against Pitt. She had a season-high 13 digs and four blocks in the five-set win at Kentucky.

Aiko Jones was named to the Final Four All-Tournament team, the All-Louisville Regional team, the AVCA First-Team All-East Region team, and the All-ACC First Team. Aiko played in all 119 sets, developing into an offensive force from the right side and the backrow. She notched 300 kills, hitting .268. The team leader in aces with 44, Aiko was a defensive threat with 108 total blocks to score 401.0 points for the Cardinals. The team captain had a season-high 20 kill performance against Wake Forest. Her season-high in aces came in the five-set battle against Pitt on Oct. 23rd. She recorded a season-best eight blocks against Stanford. Not only did she garner 13 double-digit kill performances, but she was also extremely efficient, hitting over .500 five different times: (.545 vs. Northern Kentucky 6-0-11), (.542 vs. San Diego 15-2-24), (.579 vs. Syracuse 13-2-19), (.583 vs. Pitt 8-1-12), (.588 vs. Samford 11-1-17).

Phekran (PK) Kong came into her own in 2022. She played 82 sets and recorded 103 kills hitting .303 and 106 blocks to earn 165.0 points for the Cardinals. She earned a career-high nine kills against Virginia and the season-high for the Cards with 11 blocks against Pittsburgh in the NCAA Tournament. PK was extremely efficient, achieving a .500 or better hitting percentage four different times: (.857 vs. Boston College 6-0-7), (.571 vs. Virginia 9-1-14), (.500 vs. Notre Dame 1-0-2), (.625 vs. Samford 5-0-8). She helped the Cards to the National Championship, playing in every set in the Tournament run. PK earned her career-high 11.5 points in the five-set match against Pitt.

Charitie Luper transferred in after playing her first two seasons at UCLA. In 2022, Luper was named All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention and AVCA Pacific South All-Region Honorable Mention after leading the Bruins with 3.28 kills per set and ranking second on the team with a .242 hitting percentage (min. 200 attacks). She totaled 256 kills and 184 digs in 21 matches and 78 sets played while making19 starts and leading the Bruins in kills in eight matches. She notched nine double-doubles, good for second most on the squad and reached double-digit kills in 15 of her 21 matches. She set a new career-high in kills with 25 at a .440 clip in a double-double effort with 11 digs at Arizona. She finished the season with four consecutive double-doubles while racking up 23 blocks and 10 service aces.

Elena Scott was named an AVCA Second-Team All-American honoree, an AVCA East Region First-Team honoree, and an All-ACC First-Team honoree. Elena played in all 119 sets, recording 126 assists, 41 aces, and 467 digs, a team high. A defensive titan, she had six matches with 20 or more digs: 20 vs. Ohio State, 26 vs. Georgia Tech, 20 vs. Wake Forest, 25 vs. Georgia Tech, 22 vs. Purdue, 28 vs. Pitt. Elena had a season-best match in the National Semifinal game against Pittsburgh, recording eight assists, five points, five aces, and 28 digs.

Anna DeBeer, Louisville, Sr., OH
Aiko Jones, Louisville, Gr., OPP
Phekran Kong, Louisville, Sr., MB
Charitie Luper, Louisville, Jr., OH
Elena Scott, Louisville, Jr., L/DS

University of Louisville Athletics

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Anna DeBeer

Aiko Jones

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Charitie Luper

Elena Scott

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