BIRMINGHAM, Ala.- The Southwestern Athletic Conference has announced its 2023 Preseason Poll and Preseason All-SWAC Volleyball team and individual award winners as voted by the league’s head coaches and sports information directors.
Florida A&M’s Brooke Lynn Watts was tabbed as the Preseason Player of the Year while Alabama State’s Taila Gaines was named Preseason Blocker of the Year.
Florida A&M’s Brooke Hudson was named Preseason Libero of the Year and Grambling State’s Ana Calderon was selected as the Preseason Setter of the Year rounding out the list of preseason individual award selections.
Watts concluded last season being named the 2022 SWAC Newcomer of the Year. She returns after having an impressive season in 2022 finishing with 321 kills. Watts was named to the All-SWAC First Team and earned five SWAC weekly honors. She also impacted the defensive side, finishing third on the team with 252 digs and sixth with 31 blocks.
Gaines finished the year with 49 total blocks, including 17 solos while recording 92 kills. She hit.273 on the season and concluded the year with 11 service aces. Gaines recorded five or more kills nine times this past season. She tallied four or more blocks six times with a season-high seven blocks during a league match-up.
Hudson was one of the best defensive players in the nation and the top defensive player in the SWAC, finishing with 487 digs (44
th in the nation and 1
st in SWAC) this past season. During conference play, she led the league in total digs (267) and digs per set (4.68). Hudson was consistent on the defensive end recording 10+ digs in 28 matches and 20+ in seven matches during regular season competition. She earned SWAC Defensive Player of the Week a total of five times this past season.
Calderon returns this season as a First Team All-SWAC selection from the 2022 season. She was a key contributor to one side of Grambling State’s 6-2 offense. Calderon played in a total of 100 sets this past season. She finished the season with 564 assists while averaging 5.6 assists per set. Calderon had a career high of 36 assists, 10 digs, and 2 aces in non-conference action.
In the league’s preseason poll Florida A&M was selected to finish first, followed by Alabama State (2
nd), Jackson State (3
rd), Bethune-Cookman (4
th), Grambling State (5
th) and Texas Southern (6
th) to round out the top six preseason poll team selections.
Alabama A&M was tabbed to finish in seventh place, while Prairie View A&M (8
th), Southern (9
th), Arkansas-Pine Bluff (10
th), Alcorn State (11
th) and Mississippi Valley State (12
th) were selected to finish 7-12 respectively.
Florida A&M led the league in first place votes with a total of nine, while Alabama State tallied five first place votes.
A full listing of the preseason selections and preseason poll results can be found below.
2023 SWAC Volleyball Preseason Awards
Preseason Player of the Year
Brooke Lynn Watts, Florida A&M
Preseason Blocker of the Year
Taila Gaines, Alabama State
Preseason Libero of the Year
Brooke Hudson, Florida A&M
Preseason Setter of the Year
Ana Calderon, Grambling State
Preseason All-SWAC First Team
Outside/Right Side Hitter: Brooke Lynn Watts, Florida A&M
Outside/Right Side Hitter: Alexis Williams, Jackson State
Outside/Right Side Hitter: Jada Rhodes, Alabama State
Outside/Right Side Hitter: Kylee Owens, Prairie View A&M
Middle Hitter/Blocker: Taila Gaines, Alabama State
Middle Hitter/Blocker: Jordan Jones, Jackson State
Setter: Ana Calderon, Grambling State
Setter: Alisha Callender, Bethune-Cookman
Libero/Defensive Specialist: Brooke Hudson, Florida A&M
Preseason All-SWAC Second Team
Outside/Right Side Hitter: Bailey Duckett, Alabama A&M
Outside/Right Side Hitter: A’Nylah Cobb, Alabama State
Outside/Right Side Hitter: Emerald Jacobs, Florida A&M
Outside/Right Side Hitter: Leila Smalls, Prairie View A&M
Middle Hitter/Blocker: Laila Fortson, Arkansas-Pine Bluff
Middle Hitter/Blocker: Isis Williams, Florida A&M
Setter: Emily Brooks, Alabama State
Setter: Madison Beasley, Alabama State
Libero/Defensive Specialist: Temperance Chatman, Alabama State
2023 SWAC Volleyball Preseason Poll
Predicted Order of Finish
- Florida A&M- 160 (9)
- Alabama State- 149 (5)
- Jackson State- 118
- Bethune-Cookman- 117
- Grambling State- 111
- Texas Southern- 85
- Alabama A&M- 77
- Prairie View A&M- 76
- Southern- 65
- Arkansas-Pine Bluff- 64
- Alcorn State- 46
- Mississippi Valley State- 23
*First place votes listed in parenthesis
About the SWAC
The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is considered one of the premier HBCU conferences in the country and currently ranks among the elite in the nation in terms of HBCU alumni playing with professional sports teams.
Current championship competition offered by the league includes competition for men in Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field and Tennis.
Women’s competition is offered in the sports of Basketball, Bowling, Cross Country, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field, Soccer, Softball, Tennis and Volleyball.
Follow the SWAC
For complete coverage of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, please follow the SWAC on social media at @TheSWAC (Twitter), @TheSWAC (Facebook), and @TheSWAC (Instagram) or visit the official home of the Southwestern Athletic Conference at
www.swac.org.