EASTON, Pa. –  Lafayette volleyball enters the 2019 season hungry to improve upon last season getting a fresh start with new head coach Ryan Adams.

"We are all starting again as freshman because I'm a new coach," Adams said, "It's the perfect opportunity for everyone to start from ground zero."

The Leopards are returning 15 from last year's squad and welcome five new faces, Adams' included.

"We are playing more matches than the team has in the past," Adams said, "So hopefully this prepares us well for Patriot League action."

Below is a position by position preview of the 2019 Lafayette volleyball team.

SETTERS 

The Leopards return the most experience in the setter position this season with senior Julia Howard and sophomore Rose Murphy.

Howard looks to continue her success from last season. She led the team in attacks with 669, starting in 23 matches and making an appearance in all 28. Her 669 attacks was sixth most in the Patriot League while matching a team-best 20 service aces with 20 blocks and 149 digs.  

OUTSIDE HITTERS

The Maroon and White will have a mix of experienced attackers for the 2019 season that will look to bring experience and fresh talent.

The team returns four from last year's squad in sophomores Grace Tulevech and Leanna Deegan, and seniors Sonia Musso and Katrina Ruggiero.

Tulevech is coming off a strong freshman campaign where she led the team in points with 352 and kills with 310. Teammate Leanna Deegan broke the Patriot League record for kills in a single match with 34 last season.

Both freshman Ellie Carerra-Justiz and Grace Steurer, will look to add important pieces to the Leopards' already strong outside line. Sterurer, a local product from Orefield, Pennsylvania, was a three-year starter at Parkland High School where she was a four-time district champion, a three-time conference champion and hoisted a state championship.  Her 1,000 career kills landed her a spot in the Parkland High School Hall of Fame.    

MIDDLE BLOCKERS 

The middle blockers position this season sees the return of a trio of sophomores, Kelly Austin, Madi Wahrmund and Lauren Leontas and junior Adriana Heimbauer.

Starting in all 28 matches for the Leopards, Austin recorded 253 digs and 66 kills. Wahrmund recorded 73 kills and 33 digs last season while Leontas recorded 18 kills and 26 blocks and Heimbauer recorded 26 kills on the season.

The trio is joined by freshman Mataya Megson. Megson was an All-Conference First Team and All-State Team member in 2018 and appeared in three state championships over her four years at Fossil Ridge High School in Windsor, Colorado.

DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS 

The Leopards will feature two liberos in 2019 with junior Audrey Mangum and sophomore Hannah Goodacre.

Mangum had a standout sophomore campaign, tallying 253 digs, 139 more than her freshman season. Goodacre, also slated to see the court this year, returns for her sophomore season after appearing in all of the Leopards' 28 matches last season and recording a team second-best 237 digs with 35 assists.

Sophomore Abby Devlin will add to the Leopards' depth and power at the service line and defensive side. In her freshman campaign, she appeared in 21 matches and recorded seven aces on the season.
 
Junior Ava Embry and freshman Margaret Benzing will look to also contribute to this year's power in the back. Benzing comes to College Hill after being a four year starter at the defensive specialist and libero position at Bethlehem Catholic.

SCHEDULE 

Lafayette opens the 2019 season on the road at the UMBC Invitational on Friday at 1 p.m. It will open up the tournament playing UMBC on Friday at 1 p.m. before playing Temple later that day at 4 p.m. It will close out the tournament by playing Fairfield on Saturday before heading back to College Hill.

The first of three tournaments will be the hosted by Lafayette when it welcomes Manhattan, Coppin State, Rider and Rutgers for the Crosstown Tournament on College Hill Aug. 31-Sept. 1. 

The Leopards will then travel to Hanover, New Hampshire for the Dartmouth University Tournament, where they will take on Boston College, Dartmouth and Siena Sept. 7-8. 

The Maroon and White will return home for the Lafayette Invitational, Sept. 14-15, hosting Delaware State, Hartford and Fairleigh Dickinson before opening Patriot League action on Sept. 21 when defending champion American makes the trip to Easton. 

The first of two Lafayette-Lehigh matchups will take place in Bethlehem on Oct. 5, with the rivalry coming to back to Kirby on Nov. 4. 

The Patriot League Tournament is slated for Nov. 17-18 with the location and times yet to be determined.