BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University volleyball team has been picked to finish in third place in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) standings as the 2021 MASCAC Volleyball Preseason Coaches Poll was released today by conference director of media relations, Emily Loux.

The Bears received 33 points in the poll. Framingham State University is the preseason favorite to capture the conference title as the Rams recorded 47 votes including five first place votes. Westfield State University rounds out the top three teams in the poll as the defending champion Owls finished second with 44 points and three first place votes

Under the guidance of head coach Tony daSilveira (3rd Year), the Bridgewater State volleyball team will return to the court for the first time since 2019. The Bears finished in third place in the 2019 MASCAC standings with a 5-2 conference mark (11-15 overall).

2019 All-MASCAC First Team selection Sydney Rice (Medway, Mass.) will help lead the Bears in 2021. Rice enters the upcoming campaign with 384 kills, 38 aces, 121 blocks (57 solo) and 78 digs in 72 career matches.

The Bears will open the season on Wednesday, September 1st when they travel to Wheaton College for a seven o'clock match with the Lyons. BSU's home opener is slated for Saturday, September 4th at noon against Lesley University. The MASCAC schedule gets underway on Saturday, September 25th as the Bears head to Salem State University for a noontime match with the Vikings.