Alva Review-Courier -

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. - Following a 2017 season in which the Golden Suns completed the first undefeated regular season in program history and won their fourth regular-season conference title since 2011, Arkansas Tech has been chosen as the favorite in the 2018 Great American Conference Volleyball Preseason Poll, the league announced Thursday.

Arkansas Tech is coming off a 35-1 overall record in 2017, the only loss coming against top-seeded Southwest Minnesota State in the NCAA Division II Central Region Championships. The Golden Suns posted a 16-0 conference record, the second undefeated conference season by the Suns in the GAC era.

The Golden Suns led Division II in win percentage (.972) in 2017, and Tech set conference season records in team hitting percentage (.287), opponent hitting percentage (.119), kills per set (14.7) and assists per set (13.5). The Suns won 24 matches in just three sets, and Arkansas Tech lost the first set in only three matches all season.

First-year head coach Kera Dukic welcomes back 13 returners from 2017, including all six starters. Reigning GAC Player and Setter of the Year and All-America Second Team selection Amanda Milnick returns for her junior season, after leading Tech with 10.78 assists per set in 2017. Milnick was the only player in the GAC to rank in the top three in the conference in assists and hitting percentage. She averaged 1.78 kills per set and a .326 attack percentage, while ranking second on the team with 2.67 digs per set.

Lexie Johnston also returns after a stellar freshman campaign in which she was named GAC Freshman of the Year and was Arkansas Tech's first AVCA Division II National Freshman of the Year award winner. Johnston set a conference record with a .399 attack percentage while averaging 2.86 kills and 0.86 blocks per set.

All-GAC Second Team selections Allie Anderson and Hunter Eshnaur return after combining for 5.77 kills per set in 2017. Eshnaur also ranked third on the team with 2.46 digs per set, and Anderson posted a .275 attach percentage. Tabitha Spray led the Suns with 325 kills last season, and Greer Rogers returns for her second season at Tech after leading the team with 1.09 blocks per set.

The Golden Suns will have to replace libero Madison Nagel, who finished her Arkansas Tech career in 2017 as the program's all-time leader in digs (2,359) and digs per set (4.86).

Arkansas Tech received 10 of 11 possible first-place votes in the poll, followed by Harding with two first-place votes. Oklahoma Baptist finished third in the preseason coaches' poll, with Northwestern Oklahoma, Southern Nazarene, Southwestern Oklahoma, Ouachita, Henderson State, Southeastern Oklahoma, Arkansas-Monticello, East Central and Southern Arkansas trailing, respectively.

Arkansas Tech opens the 2018 season in Warrensburg, Mo, as the Suns compete in the Peggy Martin Challenge hosted by Central Missouri. Tech opens the tournament against Central Missouri on Friday, August 24, at 1:00 p.m.