CHARLOTTE, N.C.- Coming off of a top 10 finish at the NJCAA National Tournament a season ago and returning All-American setter Fiona Baker back to the fold, the Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers will open the 2021 season ranked #7 in the NJCAA National Poll as announced by the National Office on Monday.
As expected, defending National Champs Iowa Western lead the preseason poll with Miami Dade, Snow, Utah State Eastern, and Odessa rounding out the top five and Blinn checking in one spot ahead of the Bucs at #7. Suncoast Conference foe Hillsborough joins FSW and Miami Dade in the top 20 at #17. Each of the top 13 ranked teams in the poll were at the NJCAA National Tournament a season ago and 15 of the 16 are ranked inside the preseason top 20.
The Bucs were 20-9 a season ago, winning their first Suncoast Conference Championship with a perfect 8-0 record while also capturing the South Atlantic District B Championship to qualify for their first trip to the NJCAA National Tournament where they finished 8th. FSW returns six players to the mix this season including 2020 NJCAA All-American Fiona Baker and 2020 FCSAA All-Tournament Team member Maria Petkova. They round out their 2021 roster with a pair of transfers and seven true freshmen. The Bucs roster is diverse again this season as they begin their third year of competition with players from six different countries and four different continents as well as players from five different US states.
The Bucs 2021 schedule is not for the faint of heart as each of their first six matches of the season and eight of their first nine come against teams ranked in the preseason top 20 including five ranked inside the top 10.
FSW's 'Battle at the Beach' Tournament August 27-28 in Suncoast Credit Union Arena will feature seven different teams ranked in the preseason poll including #1 Iowa Western, #2 Miami Dade, #10 Missouri State-West Plains, #15 Salt Lake, #17 Hillsborough, #20 Monroe, as well as the 7th ranked Bucs.
The Bucs are scheduled to kick off their 2021 season at home on August 27th at 10:00 AM when they face #20 Monroe in the aforementioned 'Battle at the Beach' Tournament.