HARROGATE, Tenn. – The 2019 Lincoln Memorial University women's volleyball season is upon us and for the third consecutive year, the Lady Railsplitters will begin their season-long journey with a cross-conference tournament inside Mary Mars Gymnasium. Friday and Saturday, Sept. 6-7, five other women's volleyball programs from the South Atlantic Conference, Conference Carolinas and the Peach Belt Conference will converge in Harrogate for LMU's season-opening home tournament.
 
The Lady Railsplitters' campaign will get underway Friday morning with a tournament-opening 11 a.m. match versus USC Aiken from the Peach Belt Conference, before LMU takes on Conference Carolinas' Emmanuel in the nightcap at 7 p.m. Saturday, the Lady Railsplitters will wrap up opening weekend play and close out the tournament with a 5 p.m. match against another Conference Carolina foe in King.
 
Fellow SAC members Carson-Newman and Mars Hill will also open up their fall seasons over the weekend in Mary Mars.
 
Picked in a tie with Carson-Newman to finish third in the 12-team SAC, LMU will face stiff competition from the start of its 2019 season. The Lady Railsplitters' weekend opponents combined for 64 victories, three conference championships and two NCAA Tournament appearances a year ago with both USC Aiken and Emmanuel both chosen as preseason favorites to win their leagues.
 
"USC Aiken was in the NCAA Regional finals last year and was actually the team that knocked us out in the first round of regionals," head coach Jenny Michael commented. "They bring a lot of fire power back and are going to be a very tough opponent for us to start out with, but we're very excited to be on our home floor. We're hoping that the Mars Maniacs and the atmosphere gives us a little bit of extra incentive for our players and with how many new student-athletes we have. It will be their first experience with the magic we have in Mary Mars."
 
Facing the Pacers in its inaugural match of 2019, LMU will have a chance to avenge its 2018 season ending. USC Aiken bested the Lady Railsplitters in straight sets last November in Wingate, North Carolina, as part of the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional opening round.
 
"It is definitely going to be a challenging and difficult weekend," coach Michael said. "But a challenge that we need to step up to the plate and be able to battle."
 
LMU will have to do so with a much younger team this fall after losing three starters and its libero from a season ago. A total of eight letter winners from the Lady Railsplitters' 2018 campaign, including senior middle hitters Danielle Ged and Tone Gill, senior outside hitter Kai Wesemann and starting senior libero and two-time College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Division II Academic All-American of the Year Erica Whiteaker, are no longer on the squad as assistant coach Todd Raasch and coach Michael had to hit the recruiting trail hard. Raasch and Michael brought in a total of 13 newcomers for the fall, including eight true freshman, three Division I transfers and two junior college transfers, for the largest signing class in program history.
 
"We're still figuring out who we are, we're still creating our identity," stated Michael. "I'm really excited to see us go into some challenging situations to figure out who we are and what we're going to be about. Are we going to be a team that starts strong? Are we going to be a team that finishes strong? Are we going to have grit? Are we going to be able to rise above in pressure situations?"
 
Despite losing half its starters from last season, LMU will have the services of key players in preseason All-SAC First Team right side hitter Rylee Storms and preseason All-SAC Second Team setter Emily Walter. The Lady Railsplitters also return starting senior outside hitter Lindsey Nartker and junior defensive specialist Sarah Jones. Senior Storms was an All-SAC Second Team honoree in 2018 and claimed both American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Southeast All-Region honorable mention and SAC All-Tournament Team accolades, while sophomore Walter was named to the 2018 SAC All-Freshman Team following her inaugural collegiate season of play.
 
On the heels of a second NCAA Tournament appearance in the last three years, ninth-year head coach Michael is attempting to lead LMU back to the coveted national tournament in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2011-12. Last fall, the Lady Railsplitters went 20-10 overall and 14-6 in SAC play, earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament and the Division II Southeast Regional in Wingate, North Carolina. It marked the fourth 20-win season in Michael's tenure. This fall, LMU will have the chance to post 20 victories in consecutive seasons for the first time in seven years.
 
"I think every team starts off their season with goals of winning championships and being at the top of their league," spoke Michael. "If we only focus on that long term goal, we'll get lost. It's those details, it's the day-to-day in which we are just trying to be the best version of ourselves that we can be that day."
 
"We really want to work on what if we don't have our 'A game'?" Michael continued. "What if today is just not our day, it's not our night, how do we still compete? How do we still use what we have, find out what's going well and be a competitor on the floor, whether we have our 'A game', 'B game' or 'C game'? We're going to have to get gritty and find ways to win. That's our immediate day-to-day goal, getting gritty and finding ways to win."

Ticket Info
All general admission tickets for LMU's season-opening tournament at Mary Mars Gym are $5. Children under the age of five, in addition to LMU students, faculty and staff with a valid LMU ID, and L-Club members will receive FREE admission.
 
Up Next…
Following this weekend's season-opening tournament, the Lady Railsplitters will remain in Harrogate and begin SAC competition next weekend by welcoming Tusculum to Mary Mars Gym Friday, Sept. 13 for a 7 p.m. first serve. LMU will then hit the road for an extensive seven-match road trip spanning across three weeks.

Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms - @LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram, for complete coverage of Lady Railsplitter volleyball throughout the 2019 season.