Berth in PAC title match last fall provides fuel for Saint Vincent women's volleyball team

The Saint Vincent women’s volleyball team advanced to the Presidents’ Athletic Conference final for the first time last season, losing to Allegheny in straight sets. When asked about her thoughts on that match, sophomore outside hitter Meegan Williams spared the sugar coating.

The Bearcats, she said, played like it was their first time in a big match.

“I think we kind of broke under the pressure,” she said. “When things were getting tough and they (Allegheny) were playing great, we just kind of laid down and let them walk all over us.”

To be fair, coach Susan Hozak’s team was young at several key positions, particularly along the front line. That included Williams and fellow freshman outside hitter Dakota Hershberger.

But the loss hasn’t been a source of frustration, Williams said. Rather, it served to heighten the players’ anticipation for this season.

“Many people think you’re mad because you were so close, and you didn’t make it,” the Homer City native said. “But, honestly, it just made us 10 times more excited for this year because we know how much more we want it.”

Saint Vincent is still young, with only five players who aren’t freshmen or sophomores. And there are vacancies to fill at key spots.

Most notably, the Bearcats graduated first-team all-conference setter Vivian Poach and first-team libero Stacie Ramos, who led the team in digs per set. Also lost to graduation was second-teamer Kaelyn Staples-Klasnic, who led the team in kills per set and ranked third in digs per set.

Hozak, who has coached the program since its inception in 1985, said it might take some time before she settles on her defensive rotation and setter deployment. In the meantime, Williams and Hershberger, along with senior middle hitter Lauren Fox, will be leaned on heavily.

Hozak said her sophomore duo is up to the task. Williams, who earned first-team all-conference honors as well as newcomer of the year, averaged 2.82 kills and 3.83 digs per set and served up a team-leading 35 aces. Hershberger averaged 2.14 kills and 2.44 digs.

“I think as last season went on, they really matured on the court,” Hozak said. “Coming in as a freshman, Dakota had to break her way into the lineup. She didn’t have a starting position at the beginning of the season, but she earned it.”

Fox is one of only three seniors and, at 6-foot-1, is the tallest player on a mostly undersized roster. She led the team with 84 total blocks in 2024 and contributed 1.63 kills per set.

Williams said the Bearcats, who began the 2025 season 1-2 at the Bearcat Challenge, can compensate for their lack of height with scrappy play, which also will come in handy until the defense can sort itself.

Another X-factor is the group’s collective confidence. Hozak said it was something she could sense even in the offseason.

“I think they didn’t realize that they can win, and they can beat good teams. It took a long time for us to figure that out last year,” she said. “At least in practices and what they’ve been doing in preseason, they seem to have a lot more confidence in themselves as a group.”

The PAC is split into two divisions this season, and Saint Vincent was picked to win the South Division. W&J and Chatham likely pose the biggest threats to the Bearcats’ division title hopes.

But this time, the Bearcats believe they will be equal to any challengers.

“There’s a good tension,” Williams said. “Not a tension where everybody is nervous or afraid to make mistakes or anything like that. … I don’t think anybody is afraid like we were last year.

“Everybody knows what we’re capable of, and we’re not going to stop until we get it.”