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2024 C2C Volleyball Tournament Preview

By Will DeBoer

11/14/2024 3:00:00 PM

The Rundown

One year after breaking its 11-year title drought in dramatic fashion at home, the top-seeded Salisbury University volleyball team will look to defend its conference crown at the 2024 Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) Tournament. The Sea Gulls begin their quest for back-to-back championships against fourth-seeded Mary Washington in the semifinal round on Friday at 3 p.m. inside the Freeman Center in Newport News, Va.

#C2CVB ?? | C2C Championship Seeding

1? Salisbury
2? Christopher Newport
3? UC Santa Cruz
4? Mary Washington

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— Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference (@C2CAthConf) November 11, 2024

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How We Got Here
How They Got Here
Series History
What's At Stake

Salisbury went 23-5 in the regular season, clinching its most wins in one campaign since 2015.
SU has received votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 poll for the majority of the season, drawing its first national ranking since 2013 (25th) on Oct. 29.
The Sea Gulls posted a 4-1 record in matchups with C2C opponents, winning two matches against Mary Washington and one each against Christopher Newport and UC Santa Cruz.
In the latest NCAA Power Index (NPI) on Nov. 10, Salisbury drew a No. 16 ranking. SU is also ranked third in the most recent Region V poll.
Salisbury went 9-5 in matches against teams holding regional rankings and 6-4 against nationally-ranked teams.

Under first-year head coach Emma Rohde, Mary Washington went 14-15 in the regular season but enters the postseason having won four of its last six.
The Eagles went 0-5 against C2C foes in 2024, losing to Salisbury and CNU twice and UC Santa Cruz once.
UMW placed right side Chloe Crosen setter Lauren Foley on the All-C2C First and Second Teams, respectively, while right side Ally Fletcher was named C2C Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Salisbury holds a 32-15 all-time series lead dating back to 1998.
The Sea Gulls have won five straight matchups since Sept. 2023 after the Eagles had taken nine straight from 2018-22.
Salisbury won both showdowns against UMW in the regular season, taking a 3-0 sweep at home on Sept. 20 and winning 3-1 on the road on Oct. 12.
The teams have squared off in each of the last two C2C Tournament finals. The Eagles won the title 3-1 in Fredericksburg in 2022, while the Sea Gulls returned the favor in 2023 with a 3-2 victory in Salisbury.

The winner of the SU-UMW matchup will advance to face either second-seeded Christopher Newport or third-seeded UC Santa Cruz in the C2C Championship Match on Saturday at 3 p.m.
The loser of the SU-UMW match will play in the Third Place Match on Saturday at 12 p.m.
The Sea Gulls have played in three straight C2C finals, going 1-2 with losses in 2021 (CNU in five sets) and 2022 (UMW in four sets) and a victory in 2023 (UMW in five sets).
Salisbury is seeking its second straight conference championship and 10th overall, as well as a third consecutive NCAA Tournament berth.

The 2024 Sea Gulls

#8 Gwen Eustace | C2C Defensive Player of the Year

#2 Julie Altieri | All-C2C First Team

#20 Kiley McTaggart | All-C2C First Team

#22 Emma Quandt | All-C2C Second Team

#7 Grace Rail | All-C2C Second Team

Middle blocker Gwen Eustace garnered major hardware as C2C Defensive Player of the Year.
Five Sea Gulls were recognized on the All-C2C Teams:
First Team - RS Kiley McTaggart, MB Gwen Eustace, S Julie Altieri
Second Team - DS Grace Rail, MB Emma Quandt
Julie Altieri - 1st in assists per set (9.44, by 1.38), 1st in assists (925), 4th in service aces (45), 7th in SA/S (0.46), 9th in digs (256)
Gwen Eustace - 1st in B/S (1.11), 2nd in blocks (103), 3rd in K/S (2.86), 3rd in hitting percentage (.375), 5th in kills (266)
Kiley McTaggart - 2nd in K/S (2.99), 2nd in kills (290), 6th in hitting percentage (.309)
Kayla Pedersen - 6th in SA/S (0.47), t-9th in aces (35)
Emma Quandt - 4th in B/S (0.96), 4th in blocks (87), 5th in hitting percentage (.320)
Grace Rail - 2nd in digs (462), 3rd in D/S (4.71), 5th in aces (44), 9th in SA/S (0.45)
Natalie Uibel - 3rd in aces (48), 3rd in SA/S (0.50), 5th in digs (339), 5th in D/S (3.53), 10th in kills (202)
Team - 11th in B/S (2.39), 16th in blocks (234), 24th in opp. hitting percentage (.106), 41st in hitting percentage (.226), 43rd in K/S (12.87), 44th in A/S (11.90)
Julie Altieri - 30th in triple-doubles (1), 32nd in assists (925), 38th in A/S (9.44)
Gwen Eustace - 17th in hitting percentage (.375), 23rd in blocks (103), 24th in B/S (1.11)
Kiley McTaggart - 107th in hitting percentage (.309)
Emma Quandt - 67th in B/S (0.96), 75th in blocks (87), 82nd in hitting percentage (.320)
Grace Rail - 89th in digs (462), 102nd in D/S (4.71)
Natalie Uibel - 176th in service aces (48)

We are excited to enter postseason play and defend our conference title. The playoffs are a time to show who we really are and display our heart, grit, and passion. We are going to leave it all on the floor and give it our all to make the Salisbury community proud.

Nikki Binetti, Sea Gull Head Volleyball Coach