The Bearcats won’t be catching anyone by surprise this year. The Binghamton University women’s volleyball team has been picked to win the America East Championship for the second-straight year. The team earned five of the seven possible first-place votes and received a total of 33 points, beating out Albany by a mere two points.

‘It is a great honor to be picked first,’ head coach Glenn Kiriyama said. ‘From last year, we know it’s going to be a tough road. It’s not going to be easy and every team is going to be tough to play.’

The Bearcats are the conference’s defending champions, winning their first title since 2005. The team had been predicted to finish first in last year’s preseason coaches’ poll, but finished just 5-5 in conference. However, by virtue of a three-way tie for second place, that record was good for the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament. Binghamton didn’t waste the opportunity, upsetting the top two seeds to take the title. The team would go on to lose to the No. 1 team in the nation, Penn State, in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

With two returning all-conference players and one returning all-rookie, the volleyball team will have veteran presences on the court. The three returning seniors ‘ outside hitters Michelle McDonough and Anna Lejina, and setter Lindsey Mueller ‘ will have to provide the experience and drive this team needs to repeat. Adding to the impressive lineup is returning sophomore Alex Roland, whose middle blocking will be a vital part of the game.

‘We feel confident in our outside hitters. They’re both pretty strong outside hitters and they’re go-to players,’ Kiriyama said. ‘They’re going to have to lead us this year again as they did in the conference last year.’

After losing captain and middle blocker Dawn Lammert and libero Brianna Strong, the Bearcats will have to rely on both their seasoned players and the new additions. Lammert, who was a finalist for the America East Woman of the Year award, led the team in blocks. Strong, who was ranked third in the conference in overall digs, picked up the back row defense tremendously. The team has not yet decided who will take over as the new libero and will allow different players to compete for the role.

‘We lost a couple key players in our libero. We’re going to have a brand new one this year. She’s going to have to do quite a bit in the back row for us and Dawn Lammert is going to be missed,’ Kiriyama said.

The Bearcats will feature a few new faces as well. Middle blocker Grace Vickers and defender Xiomara Ortiz will be freshmen on the team, and outside hitter Iva Partaleva comes as a sophomore transfer from Seminole State College. Jordyn Suhr played on the club volleyball team for Binghamton, and will join the team this year.

Although conference games do not start until October, BU volleyball looks to defend its America East title. The team faces even more competition this season, as Providence College was added to the conference this year. Providence volleyball had previously played as an independent team. Conference play is set to begin for the Bearcats on Oct. 3 at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. The team’s first home match is scheduled for Oct. 8 against the University of New Hampshire, a conference opponent.

The Bearcats’ season got off to an impressive start in a tight loss (22-25, 16-25, 21-25) to No. 12 Michigan on Friday. Seniors McDonough and Lejina each recorded double-digit kills and eight digs, while new setter Julie Chambers had 22 assists. The Bearcats then lost handily to host University of Toledo and lost a close match to Loyola University, each in three sets, on Saturday.

The Bearcats continue their preseason slate this weekend as they take on Jacksonville, Dartmouth and Sacred Heart in the Sacred Heart Invitational.