Wolf Pack volleyball voted first in SSAC Preseason Poll

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – With the Loyola Wolf Pack volleyball team beginning its conference title defense later this month, Southern States Athletic Conference coaches voted Loyola first in the 2026 SSAC Preseason Poll, the conference announced Thursday. 
 

The Wolf Pack topped the poll with 134 points, which included seven of 12 first-place votes. Mobile, last year's regular-season winner, was just three points behind Loyola with 131, including three first-place votes. William Carey was picked third in the conference with 124 points, garnering one first-place vote, while Blue Mountain (101) and Xavier (91) round out the top five. Life, which tied for seventh with Point, received the only other first-place vote. 
 

"Being picked first in the preseason poll is an honor and speaks to the foundation our program has built," head coach Jenna Ibieta said. "We return a strong core of experienced players, and we're excited about the talented newcomers who have joined our program. We believe that combination will allow us to continue to compete at a high level, but we know we'll have to earn our success every day."
 

Ibieta, the 2025 SSAC Assistant Coach of the Year, enters her first season as head coach of the Wolf Pack indoor volleyball team after being elevated to head coach of the indoor and beach volleyball programs in January. 
 

Loyola finished the 2025 season with a 29-9 overall record and a 12-4 mark in conference play. The Wolf Pack went 5-0 at the 2025 SSAC Championship to capture its first conference tournament title. 
 

While the Pack lost All-Conference players Kala Emanuelli, Ivana De Carvalho Peixe, and tournament MVP Samantha Guillotte, many contributors from last year's championship team are returning for 2026. 
 

Both of last year's starting setters, Ellie Connor and Belén Puche Laguna, enter their senior seasons in New Orleans, as does Alexa Palmer, who was selected to last year's SSAC All-Tournament Team with junior Clarissa Dupree. They're joined by graduate student Tyler Alcorn and sophomores Lola Blancher, Zoe Barnes, and Isis Harink, who was the 2025 SSAC Attacker of the Year and Freshman of the Year. 
 

Loyola's 2026 roster also includes a large freshman class, with seven incoming freshmen and one graduate student comprising the newcomers. Aquinas College graduate transfer Mel Beachnau joins first-year players Olivia Smith, Catherine McClain, Caroline McKinney, Hayden Perret, Caroline Beahm, Parker Sehlinger, and Ava Labat. 
 

The 2026 campaign begins for the Wolf Pack on Friday, Aug. 21, at the Onset Invitational in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The team will play four matches on Friday and Saturday before coming back to New Orleans to host the Wolf Pack Welcome tournament Friday, Aug. 28, and Saturday, Aug. 29. More information on Loyola's 2026 schedule can be found at LoyolaWolfPack.com.
 

2026 SSAC Volleyball Coaches' Preseason Poll 

1. Loyola – 134 (7)
2. Mobile – 131 (3)
3. William Carey – 124 (1)
4. Blue Mountain – 101
5. Xavier – 91
6. UT Southern – 78
7. Life – 72 (1)
7. Point – 72 
9. Faulkner – 52 
10. Brewton-Parker – 43
11. Andrew – 21
12. Wesleyan – 17
 

Subscribe to Pack Tracks, a Loyola Athletics Newsletter, for all of the latest information >> https://loyolawolfpack.com/subscribe.aspx. You can also keep up with the Pack by following Wolf Pack Athletics on Facebook at Facebook.com/LoyolaWolfPack, Twitter and Instagram @LoyolaWolfPack, and by checking out our website at LoyolaWolfPack.com.