BRENTWOOD, Tenn. - The Lindenwood women's volleyball team has been predicted to finish fifth in this season's OVC Preseason Poll, which was released by the conference on Wednesday morning. Dana Grib and Ashley Geluck were named Players to Watch for the upcoming season.

Morehead State was voted preseason favorite, coming in atop the poll with nine first-place votes and a total of 116 points. The Eagles were followed by Southeast Missouri in second, Southern Indiana in third, and defending champ Eastern Illinois in fourth, who each received three first-place votes.

After the Lions was SIUE in sixth and UT Martin in seventh, with Western Illinois and Tennessee State rounding out the poll in eighth and ninth, respectively.

Lindenwood returns a lions' share of production off last season's team, bringing back their top four scorers from 2025, including OVC Player to Watch Ashley Geluck, who finished second on the team in kills (273), aces (26), and blocks (47) a year ago.

Meanwhile, Lindenwood's other Player to Watch – Dana Grib – led the Lions with 437 digs last season for a clip of 4.28 digs per set, which was the fourth highest average in the Ohio Valley Conference.

LU also brings back 2025 First Team All-OVC selection and 2024 Freshman of the Year Autumn Bax, who posted a team-leading 348 kills on a .241 hitting percentage last season. Bax finished fifth in the OVC with an average of 3.41 kills per set while her 3.75 points per set were eighth most in the league.

The Lions finished the 2025 season with an overall record of 11-16, qualifying for the OVC Tournament for the fourth consecutive season before falling to eventual champ Eastern Illinois in five sets to end the year.

Lindenwood opens the 2026 campaign at the Billiken Invitational in St. Louis, facing UIC at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, August 28th to begin regular season play. The Lions will also face Buffalo at noon on Saturday, August 29th before concluding the weekend against Saint Louis at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 30th.

Predicted Order of Finish
1. Morehead State (9) - 116
2. Southeast Missouri (3) - 102
3. Southern Indiana (3) - 99
4. Eastern Illinois (3) - 98
5. Lindenwood - 77
6. SIUE - 63
7. UT Martin - 37
8. Western Illinois – 34
9. Tennessee State – 13

Returning All-OVC
OPP - Katie Kopshever, Jr. - Eastern Illinois
L - Ariadna Pereles, Jr. - Eastern Illinois
RS - Autumn Bax, Jr.- Lindenwood
OH - Hollan Everett, Sr. - Morehead State
MB - Amelia Nott, Sr. - Morehead State
S - Sydney Sennett, Sr. - Morehead State
OH - Lucy Arndt, Sr. - Southeast Missouri
OH - Marin Johnson, Jr. - Southeast Missouri
S - Aysa Thomas, So. - Southern Indiana
OH - Ashby Willis, Sr. - Southern Indiana

2026 OVC Volleyball Watch List
Hannah Hawkins, Sr., S – Eastern Illinois
Jorah Rutter, So., OPP – Eastern Illinois
Ashley Geluck, Sr., MH - Lindenwood
Dana Grib, Sr., L – Lindenwood
Courtney Fitzgerald, Sr., DS – Morehead State
Ella Warrick, Fr., OH – Morehead State
Reagan Nelson, So., OH – Southeast Missouri
Katy St. John, So., RS – Southeast Missouri
Sophie Robinson, Jr., OH – SIUE
Vienna Elliott, Sr., MB – SIUE
Audrey Small, Jr., L – Southern Indiana
Carley Wright, So., RS – Southern Indiana
Brie Blevins, Jr., MB – Tennessee State
Triniti Jackson, Fr., S – Tennessee State
Chyler Martin, So., OH/OPP – UT Martin
Luli Arcucci, Jr., MB/OPP – UT Martin
Kennedy Adair, Sr., OH – Western Illinois
Georgia Haynes, RS-Fr., RS – Western Illinois