The Shockers open the season on the road Aug. 24, at the NIU Invitational in DeKalb, Ill., against New Mexico State.
WSU returns four starters and seven letterwinners to a team that went 21-11 in 2011 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
The Shockers will play five teams that are ranked or receiving votes in the preseason poll including Tennessee (15th), Northern Iowa (21st), Colorado State (25th), BYU (RV), and Oklahoma (RV).
Top returners include 2011 first team all-Valley selection Emily Adney and second team selections Ashley Andrade and Elizabeth Field. Adney averaged 3.41 kills and 1.54 digs per set, while Andrade averaged 2.04 kills and 1.06 blocks per set and Field averaged 2.19 kills and 0.88 blocks per set.
For the entire poll, go to www.avca.org.
AVCA Preseason Top 25
1. UCLA (54)
2. Texas (1)
3. Penn State
4. Nebraska (1)
5. Southern California (1)
6. Stanford (3)
7. Illinois
8. Hawaii
9. Purdue
10. Iowa State
11. Pepperdine
12. Florida State
13. Kentucky
14. Washington
15. Tennessee
16. Minnesota
17. California
18. Florida
19. San Diego
20. Oregon
21. Northern Iowa
22. Kansas State
23. Michigan
24. Ohio State
25. Colorado State
-Wichita State-
