HBCUAC Preseason All-Conference Volleyball Team And Rankings | 2025

The HBCUAC released its 2025 All-HBCUAC Preseason Volleyball team and predicted order of rankings.

2025 Preseason All-HBCUAC Volleyball Team | HBCUAC

NEW ORLEANS - The HBCU Athletic Conference announced the 2025 Preseason All-HBCUAC Volleyball Teams and Rankings, with Reagan Jones of Fisk University being named the 2025 HBCUAC Preseason Player of the Year on Wednesday.

Nominations and voting for the awards were conducted by the head volleyball coaches of the HBCU Athletic Conference (HBCUAC). Points were assigned based on the rankings each coach provided for the athletes.

Jones earned the title of 2024 HBCUAC Player of the Year, along with awards for Attacker of the Year and Newcomer of the Year, totaling 62 points and receiving seven first-place votes. Additionally, she was named a Third-Team NAIA All-American last season. Jones led the HBCUAC with 440 kills, averaging 3.38 kills per set.

The rest of the team is below:

• Cadence Thomas, Dillard: Two-time All-HBCUAC First Team selection
• Essence Wren, Philander Smith: Three-time All-HBCUAC selection with two on First Team
• Briyith Echeverri, Talladega: 2024 HBCUAC Defender of the Year; finished second in the conference with 511 digs
• Nialah Gupton, Fisk: 2024 All-HBCUAC First Team; led the conference with 545 digs
• Gabrielle Washington, Dillard: 2024 All-HBCUAC Second Team; ranked 11th in NAIA with 1.3 blocks per set
• Zarea Winn, Philander Smith: 2024 All-HBCUAC First Team; averaged 3.09 kills per set

The conference also released its Preseason Rankings, which the head coaches voted on. Points were derived from the order in which the teams were ranked. The defending HBCUAC postseason champion Dillard University finished atop the rankings with 155 points and 10 of 13 first-place votes.

Last season, the team finished with a record of 20 wins and nine losses. Fisk University followed, advancing to the semifinals with a total of 142 points and receiving one first-place vote. They concluded the season with a record of 23 wins and 16 losses.

Tied for third place were Philander Smith University and Talladega College, the two-time defending regular-season champions. Newcomers Paul Quinn College and Huston-Tillotson University, both of which competed in the Red River Athletic Conference last season, placed fifth and sixth, respectively.

2025 HBCUAC Predicted Order of Finish | HBCUAC

Below are the complete rankings:

1. Dillard University 155 (10)

2. Fisk University 142 (1)

3. Philander Smith 127

3. Talladega College 127

5. Paul Quinn College 103

6. Huston-Tillotson 91 (1)

6. Stillman College 91

8. Oakwood University 90

9. Tougaloo College 78

10. Southern University at New Orleans 67

11. Wiley University 43

12. Wilberforce University 41

13. Rust College 28 (1)

Fans can catch all the action of the HBCU Athletic Conference on the . The 2025 season will culminate in the 2025 HBCUAC Volleyball Championship hosted by Bossier Parish Community College for the third straight season. The top four teams from each division will qualify for the playoffs.

About the HBCU Athletic Conference

The HBCU Athletic Conference (HBCUAC) is the only HBCU conference in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).

The HBCUAC membership includes:

1. Dillard University (LA),
2. Fisk University (TN),
3. Huston-Tillotson University (TX),
4. Oakwood University (AL),
5. Paul Quinn College (TX),
6. Philander Smith University (AR),
7. Rust College (MS),
8. Southern University at New Orleans (LA),
9. Stillman College (AL),
10. Talladega College (AL),
11. Tougaloo College (MS),
12. University of the Virgin Islands (St. Thomas),
13. Voorhees University (SC),
14. Wilberforce University (OH),
15. Wiley University (TX).

HBCUAC sponsors championships in men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's track and field, women's volleyball, softball, and baseball. In 2022, the HBCUAC secured the largest media rights deal in conference and NAIA history, signing a multimillion-dollar contract with Urban Edge Network.

On July 1, 2024, the conference rebranded from the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) to the HBCU Athletic Conference, marking a new era for the conference that embodies the makeup of its membership. For more information, visit .

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