Ninth-year head coach Cara Currier has a lot of positive things to look forward to as the 2010 season approaches for her University of St. Francis volleyball team.

The Saints are coming off a fine 27-16 season in which they placed second only to rival Olivet Nazarene University in both the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference regular-season standings and in the league's postseason championship tournament. They enjoyed a midseason stretch in which they won 13 of 14 matches and put themselves in position to play Olivet for the league crown in the final contest of the regular season. They also waltzed their way through their first three CCAC Tournament pool-play matches to earn a spot in the finale against Olivet, a match that, like the regular season finale, would be played in Bourbonnais. USF lost both those tilts, but did win the first game of the CCAC Tourney title match before falling in four games.

Only two seniors graduated from that squad, defensive specialist Karen Gruber and CCAC Libero of the Year Courtney Ambrosch. Returnees include the 2009 CCAC Freshman of the Year - outside hitter Jazzmyne Robbins - and first-team All-CCAC senior middle blocker Lauren Hoffman.

Also coming back is fifth-year setter Kelsey Polte. The all-time single season assists leader in USF's storied history, Polte's 2009 season ended with an ankle injury in the fifth match and she was granted a medical redshirt year for 2010.

Add to all of this an expanded CCAC volleyball membership - Purdue University Calumet sponsors a varsity team for the first time in 2010, giving the CCAC two automatic berths into the NAIA Championship field - and Currier and her team have yet another path to reach their goal of returning to the national tourney for the first time since 2002.

But a strong finish to last season and a lot of returning players certainly does not guarantee success in the coming year. Currier and the Saints fully realize that fact as they enter fall camp in preparation for the challenging year ahead.

Breaking down the Saints by position:

Setters

Polte returns and hopes to enjoy the success she had planned for the 2009 season.

"Obviously, the potential is there for Kelsey to conclude her college career with another great season," says Currier. "She was poised last year to lead us into battle for a conference title and a trip to nationals but that unfortunate injury got in the way. Thankfully, it came early enough in the season that she could qualify for a medical redshirt.

"Kelsey is chomping at the bit to come back and wants to make sure that she has a meaningful last year in our program. As difficult as it was for her to sit out and watch from the bench last year, I hope that what she saw was enlightening for her and that she will come back and be an even better player than she was prior to the injury."

Polte was a first-team All-CCAC performer as a junior in 2008 and continued to put her name in the USF record books as one of the more prolific setters in program history.

But Polte knows that the starting setting job won't just be handed to her. Sophomore Ashley Richards stepped in as a true freshman in 2009 and endured a difficult but often successful baptism-under-fire in running the Saints' offense during that 27-16 campaign.

"Never in my wildest dreams," says Currier, "would I have believed anyone last fall if they had told me that when Kelsey got hurt, Ashley Richards would step in and lead us to within one match of the conference championship and just two games away from a trip to the national tournament. She did a fantastic job for us and helped both Jazzmyne (Robbins) and Lauren (Hoffman) put together the offensive numbers that led to their all-conference awards."

In addition to Richards, sophomore Laura Shain will also be battling Polte for playing time and a potential starting position. Shain played sparingly as a freshman in 2008 and was ineligible for the 2009 campaign.

"I've watched Laura play a lot for three years now since I started recruiting her from Plainfield High when she was a senior," says Currier. "She spent her freshman season learning our system and unfortunately was unable to do anything but practice last year when Polte's injury would have given her some significant experience. I still don't know quite what to expect from her but I know she has the talent to really help us. She is a great athlete and brings an element of tenacity to the court that any team would love to have."

Hannah Hunnicutt, a freshman from Michigan City, Ind., rounds out the setting corps.

Middle Blockers

Hoffman continued her improvement last year with a breakout season that garnered her first-team All-CCAC recognition for the very first time. She led the Saints in blocking for the third straight season. It was her offensive improvement, though, that grabbed people's attention.

"Hoffman came out of her shell last year and became a bonafide all-conference player, on both defense and offense," says Currier. "With our freshman setter Ashley Richards pounding the ball into the middle, we found out just how talented Lauren can be on offense. She became a very credible and respected No. 2 in our "one-two" punch with Jazzmyne (Robbins).

"I know that she can become a real force to be reckoned with in blocking," adds Currier. "We are expecting wonderful things from her this season."

Sophomore Erin McNeil gained some experience as a freshman and should become more of a factor for the Saints this year.

"Erin is almost a better natural blocker than Hoffman is," says Currier. "She finishes better than Lauren and adjusted very quickly to the faster pace of the college game last year. We hope to help her get better offensively and become a real threat there as well."

Currier expects positive contributions from freshman Kate McIlvanie in the middle as well.

"McIlvanie brings a lot to the table," says Currier. "We can pull her back into serve receive if we have to because she passes the ball very well. She is probably, at this point, more of an offensive threat in the middle than McNeil, too. A lot will depend upon how well she adapts to the speed of the college game."

Right-Side Attackers

Junior Sarah Ahline made big strides as a sophomore and was rewarded with honorable mention All-CCAC accolades at the conclusion of the year. She anchored the Saints' right side and averaged nearly 2.5 kills per game.

"It's good to see that the CCAC is starting to recognize Sarah's talent," says Currier. "We are looking for more consistency from her as a junior and more improvement defensively as a blocker. She is also a good server and I probably did not utilize her enough in that role last year."

Sophomore Stephanie Shostok is the primary backup to Ahline on the right side but will also get a look at the outside hitter position as well.

"We'll probably work Stephanie at both positions in preseason camp," says Currier. "She is a strong hitter and just needs to learn to adjust better to the blockers on her attack. She is one of our better athletes and can be a very versatile player."

Outside Hitters

Robbins established herself as one of the top young players in the CCAC last year when she was named the conference's Freshman of the Year. She immediately became the Saints' top offensive weapon and opened the eyes of the other coaches around the league.

"I have no reason to believe that she can't become the most dominant hitter in our league," says Currier. "Jazzmyne's challenge will be to adjust her game to the new things that are thrown at her this year now that everyone in the conference has seen her play and knows what to expect from her. She is a smart hitter, though, and I think she will adjust accordingly. Hopefully, we have tinkered with her repertoire enough to get her some more non-booming kills."

Senior Kyrsten Becker, a two-time CCAC honorable mention pick, returns to the outside this season after spending a big portion of her junior year in the middle.

"Kyrsten is more comfortable over there than she was in the middle," says Currier. "She did a great job of bridging the gap in the middle for us last year as we needed another experienced player to play along with Hoffman in the middle. With the improvement of McNeil and the addition of Kate McIlvanie, we are deep enough in the middle that we can move Kyrsten back to her natural position.

"If Kyrsten plays as well on the outside as we anticipate, other teams won't be able to always put their best blocker on Robbins," continues Currier. "We really hope to create some matchup problems at the net this year with a formidable line that includes Becker and Robbins on the outside and Hoffman in the middle."

Shostok will also get some looks at the outside position as will incoming freshman Breanne Shaw.

"Shaw is another new face that we will take a look at on the outside," says Currier. "I know that she can step in and play some tremendous defense for us but I am anxious to see how well she adapts to the college game offensively."

Libero

Currier heads into preseason camp not knowing - or even having a strong feeling - as to who will end up in the critical libero position. The graduated Ambrosch manned that spot for the last three seasons - she was the only player to wear the libero jersey last season - and was the most recent in a lengthy line of outstanding liberos at St. Francis.

Among the possibilities for the person who will wear the different colored jersey are sophomores Dana Wettergren and Ashley Thompson and the freshman Shaw.

Whoever is not playing libero will be on the court in the defensive rotation for the Saints.

Defensive Specialists

Wettergren was enjoying a solid freshman year until a knee injury in mid-October during USF's Big Guns Classic ended her season. Thompson started her freshman year as an outside hitter but slowly gravitated to the defensive role and saw her playing time increase sharply after Wettergren was sidelined.

"Wettergren is lightning quick," says Currier. "She stepped in from the very beginning of her freshman season and showed us that she was ready to play at this level. Her loss really was a blow to us as we headed to the wire last season.

"Thompson is a real solid, smooth and consistent player," continues Currier. "She is an excellent serve receiver and a smart player.

"We expect nothing but continued improvement from these two as they learn to become better readers of our opponents' plays on the other side of the net."

"Shaw will play some on defense in addition to the outside. She is a good enough athlete to play all the way around the court for us."

In addition to that talented trio, two other veterans return on defense for the Saints. Junior Nicole Brown and sophomore Breanna Rivera add depth to the Saints' backcourt.

"Brown came off the bench and did some nice things for us last year," says Currier. "She has a very nice serve and we'll continue to use her in that role this year. She also has improved her play on the court and I won't hesitate to put her into the game if other players are struggling.

"Rivera shows real good potential," continues Currier. "She has a better-than-average serve and is a good athlete. We need her to expect more out of herself and play with more confidence."

The CCAC

With 12 teams in the conference, the CCAC now qualifies to have two teams receive automatic berths into the NAIA national tournament field. Those berths will go to the regular season champion and the postseason conference tournament winner. If the same school wins both, then the runnerup in the conference tourney will get the second nod.

The Saints know that had that format been in place in recent years, they would have gone to the national tourney in two of the last three seasons. With a veteran lineup returning, Currier's team clearly has made a trip to the national tourney one of its top goals.

But recent success alone does not mean it will be easy for the Saints to nab one of those two berths. Olivet Nazarene has been a regular visitor to the national tourney and won both the CCAC and league tournament titles a year ago. Currier acknowledges the Tigers as the team to beat once again in the conference.

Beyond that, there are several teams that can be considered serious contenders for the conference crown or, at least, the second slot in the national field.

Currier sees Saint Xavier as especially dangerous.

"Saint Xavier has been getting better and better each of the last two years," says Currier. "They shared the conference title with us back in 2007 and were young each of the last two years. But they are not so young anymore and they have the talent and experience to be a strong contender this year.

"Illinois Tech is always a tough team and has been a thorn in our side for most of the last few years. Trinity International and Judson are two teams that can cause problems for anybody in the league. I know from first-hand experience because two seasons ago we went up to Trinity International as a big favorite and got handled pretty easily. And last year Judson came back from being down 2-0 to beat us.

"Trinity Christian has been solid the last few years, especially defensively. They are always going to play you tough.

"Robert Morris and Cardinal Stritch are the two wild cards this year in my eyes," continues Currier. "I hear that Robert Morris has brought in a strong recruiting class and they have come a long way in the past couple of years. Cardinal Stritch gave us fits at their place last year and we have to go back up to Milwaukee again this year and I am not looking forward to an easy match there. They were probably the most improved team in the league last year.

"Calumet has gotten better recently and is no longer a program that you can just ignore and count as an easy win. They got their first conference win last year and will continue to improve. Purdue North Central is still a relatively new program and Purdue Calumet is in its first year so I don't really know what to expect from either of them yet."