NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Hauling in the highest preseason national ranking for the program since 2016, the Christopher Newport volleyball team was pegged No. 21 in the AVCA Preseason Coaches Poll released on Tuesday. On the same day, the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference released the preseason coaches poll for the league and the Captains were picked to repeat as conference champions in 2025.
After finishing the 2024 campaign at No. 21 in the nation, the Captains will start the 2025 season in the same slot. It marks the finest preseason start since 2016 when the Captains were ranked No. 11 in the AVCA Preseason Coaches Poll.
This year, Christopher Newport was a unanimous selection to capture the 2025 Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Volleyball Championship, pulling in six of a possible seven first-place votes. The poll, in which head coaches cannot vote for their own team, saw CNU haul in a maximum 36 points to lead the way while Salisbury was picked second with 29 points and the remaining first-place vote. Rounding out the top five in order are UC Santa Cruz (27 pts), Mary Washington (22 pts), and league newcomer Regent (14 pts). Warren Wilson (11 pts) was picked to finish sixth and Johnson & Wales (N.C.) (8 pts) finished out the preseason poll.
The Captains competed in their 17th consecutive NCAA Championship in 2024 and finished the season with an impressive 26-10 overall record while facing the nation's ninth-toughest schedule. On the way to an NCAA Regional Championship appearance, the Captains conquered some of the best programs in the country including wins over Calvin, Washington and Lee, Salisbury, and East Texas Baptist.
This year, the CNU schedule features a host of opponents ranked in the August 19 AVCA/TARAFLEX Division III Women's Volleyball Preseason Poll. That group includes No. 2 Wisconsin-Whitewater, set to travel to CNU on the opening day of the season next Friday, August 29. CNU will also take on top-ranked Juniata, No. 4 Johns Hopkins, No. 9 Washington and Lee, No. 10 Trinity (Texas), and No. 23 NYU during the season, along with a handful of others receiving votes in the poll.
Christopher Newport is led by All-American and Conference Player of the Year
Alyssa Dozier for her senior season while the Captains take the floor under the director of Conference Coach of the Year
Lindsay Birch in her 23rd season. Dozier put together the finest year of her career last season while hitting a team-high .313 with 386 kills and 147 blocks. Senior
Megan James is also back in the fold after piling up 255 kills with 352 digs last season while junior
Samantha Dorn returns after ranking second on the team with 344 kills.
Opening the season at home in the Captains Classic, Christopher Newport will welcome Catholic University of America for a 3:00 p.m. match on Friday, August 29 for the first match of the year. That will set up the aforementioned bout against Whitewater at 7:00 p.m. before CNU closes out the opening weekend against the U.S. Coast Guard Academy on Saturday, August 30.
2025 C2C Volleyball Preseason Poll
Rank Team Points (1st)
1 Christopher Newport 36 (6)
2 Salisbury 29 (1)
3 UC Santa Cruz 27
4 Mary Washington 22
5 Regent 14
6 Warren Wilson 11
7 JWU Charlotte 8
