The ETSU volleyball team is headed into the SoCon Tournament in the second seed position, ready to take on No. 7 Western Carolina in the first round.
This year, one senior, one sophomore and one freshman have made an impact larger than just within ETSU.
Senior Rylee Milhorn (Kingsport, Tennessee) has been dominant for the Bucs this year, and this earned her a spot on the All-SoCon First Team. Milhorn was fourth in the conference for kills, totaling 220 for the season. As a senior, she added up to 1,000 digs and 1,000 kills, one of 27 women in the Division 1 league to do so.
Milhorn is joined on the All-SoCon First Team by sophomore teammate Leah Clayton (Danville, Virginia). Clayton was nine serves behind Milhorn, having 211 for the season.
One of her two 20 plus kill matches came against Western Carolina during the regular season, an aspect the Bucs are hoping to see again going into the tournament.
Freshman standout for the Bucs Marija Popovic (Belgrade, Serbia) was named Librero of the Year and Freshman of the Year in the SoCon.
In October, she was named Defensive Player of the Month and finished the regular season with 415 digs.
Looking at the regular season against Western Carolina, the Bucs won the very first match with them 3-1. Later on in the season, when the Bucs travelled to Western, they fell 3-2.
That first win was Head Coach Lindsey Devine’s 250th career win, and the first 1,000 mark achievement for senior Milhorn.
A lot has happened for the Bucs against Western Carolina this season, and the hope is that they get a first round conference win to make it to the championship.
