UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) announced the 2026 Volleyball Preseason Coaches Poll ahead of the start of the upcoming season.
The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball program was picked ninth in the poll, earning 32 points. The Cardinals sit ahead of Lake Superior State (16) and Roosevelt (13). Ferris State was selected to win the conference with 99 points and nine first-place votes, while Grand Valley State received the remaining two first-place votes and sits second with 90 points. Wayne State was picked third with 78 points, followed by Northern Michigan with 73 and Parkside with 69 to round out the top five. Davenport (52), Michigan Tech (49), and Purdue Northwest (34) were selected sixth through eighth, respectively.
Head coach Lana Rybkowski enters her third season leading the program with an experienced roster that features 14 returning players and six newcomers.
Saginaw Valley returns its top two attackers from last season in redshirt-junior Rachel Townsend (Oxford, Mich., Oxford HS) and junior Chloe Vanwinkle (Clio, Mich., Clio High School). Townsend led the Cardinals with 323 kills and averaged 3.51 kills per set while adding a team-high 230 digs and 27 service aces. Vanwinkle finished second on the team with 195 kills and led SVSU with 28 service aces while contributing 144 digs.
The Cardinals also bring back experience throughout the lineup. Junior Jackie Scheiber (Wyandotte, Mich., Riverview Community HS) returns after leading the team with 709 assists last season, while senior Ava Beard (Berkley, Mich., Berkley HS) added 187 assists. Senior Kendall White (DeWitt, Mich., St. John's HS) recorded 215 digs, the second-most on the team, while sophomore Marissa Roe (Chesterton, Ind., Chesterton HS) led the Cardinals at the net with 66 blocks. Senior Kendall Ihm (Owosso, Mich., Owosso HS) added 48 blocks, and junior Ava Decker (Elkhart, Ind., Elkhart HS) finished with 110 kills and 33 blocks.
SVSU welcomes six newcomers to the roster for 2026. Freshmen Zadie Schmidt (Byron, Mich., Byron Area HS),Zoey Sellers-King (Corunna, Mich., Corunna HS), Sadie Devlaeminck (Grand Rapids, Mich., East Grand Rapids HS), and Makayla Bruman (Attica, Mich., Imlay City HS) join the Cardinals alongside sophomore Mia Buttigieg (Grass Lake, Mich., Grass Lake HS) and junior setter Taylor Smith (Pewamo, Mich., Pewamo-Westphalia Community Schools). Smith comes to SVSU after playing the last two years at Eastern Michigan University.
The Cardinals begin the 2026 campaign at the UIndy Invite in Indianapolis on Friday, August 28. SVSU opens the tournament against West Liberty at 9:00 AM before facing Thomas More at 2:00 PM. The Cardinals conclude the opening weekend with matches against Walsh and Indianapolis on Saturday, August 29.
Saginaw Valley then travels to Grand Rapids for the Grand Rapids Downtown Classic on September 4-5, facing Northwood, Seton Hill, Cedarville, and Slippery Rock. GLIAC play begins on the road against Wayne State on Friday, September 11 at 7:00 PM.
The Cardinals make their home debut the following afternoon when they host Michigan Tech on Saturday, September 12 at 2:00 PM inside Hamilton Gymnasium. SVSU will also compete in the Midwest Region Crossover on October 16-17 at the Hammond Sportsplex in Hammond, Indiana. The Cardinals close the regular season on Sunday, November 8 with a road matchup against Grand Valley State at 1:00 PM.
