Wichita State's Sophia Rohling was one of 12 players named Wednesday to the American Athletic Conference's preseason all-conference team.
 
Rohling, a Thayer, Kan. native who is set to begin her third season at WSU, hit .270 and averaged a team-high 3.09 kills-per-set during the abbreviated spring season.
 
Notably, all 12 first team all-conference selections returned from last year and all were named to the preseason squad.
 
The Shockers (9-8, 4-6 American in 2020-21) are picked eighth in the coaches poll with 33 points, one point behind South Florida (34 points), and well ahead of Tulsa, East Carolina and Memphis.
 
UCF, led by preseason player of the year McKenna Melville, is the unanimous favorite (100), beating out Houston (80). SMU (66), Tulane (64), Cincinnati (61) and Temple (58) rank third-through-sixth in the poll.

The Shockers open their 2021 season Friday, Aug. 27 at the A-State Invitational in Jonesboro, Ark. with neutral court matches against Missouri State (10 a.m.) and UT Martin (5 p.m.). Their first home actionn comes Sep. 17-18 when they host their annual Shocker Volleyball Classic.
 

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2021 American Athletic Conference:
Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll
(First-place votes in parentheses. Coaches could not vote for their own teams/players)
 
UCF (10) -- 100
Houston (1) -- 80
SMU -- 66
Tulane -- 64
Cincinnati -- 61
Temple -- 58
South Florida -- 34
Wichita State -- 33
Tulsa -- 24
East Carolina -- 18
Memphis – 18
 
Preseason Player of the Year:
McKenna Melville, Sr., OH, UCF*
 
Preseason All-Conference Team:
McKenna Melville, Sr., OH, UCF*
Anne-Marie Watson, R-Sr., RS, UCF*
Bri Wood, Sr., RS, East Carolina
Annie Cooke, So., S, Houston
Kortlyn Henderson, Sr., OH, Houston
Abbie Jackson, Jr., OH, Houston*
Marta Cvitkovic, So., OH, South Florida*
Falanika Danielson, So., S, Temple
Gem Grimshaw, Sr., OH, Temple
Kayla Dinkins, Sr., MH, Tulane
Lexie Douglas, R-Sr., OH, Tulane*
Sophia Rohling, So., RS, Wichita State
 
*denotes unanimous selection