MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama volleyball team opened practice for the 2019 season Friday at Jag Gym. 

South Alabama worked out for three hours Friday morning, and is scheduled to return to court Friday from 3-5 p.m. as part of the opening day of preseason practice. 

"I am definitely pleased at what I saw from an energy and focus standpoint," head coach Alexis Meeks-Rydell said. "We had a little hiccup this morning just due to lack of detail, but not because of lack of effort and attitude, and that's what we talk about all the time; it's okay to fail as long as you are doing what we ask you to do. If the energy, effort and attitude are there, I'm okay with everything else. 

"This is our time, during preseason, to make mistakes and improve at the little fundamental details that we're working on. It definitely got better after the little hiccup this morning, and I'm very pleased with where we look right now in comparison to where we ended the spring. You can tell that they work their tails off this summer, which is exciting for us coaches because that means they are invested in what's going on; I couldn't be more pleased from that aspect." 

The Jaguars return nine letterwinners from last year's squad that finished third in the Sun Belt Conference East Division, and welcome four newcomers to the roster for 2019 in addition to a new coaching staff which features head coach Alexis Meeks-Rydell.

"What was most exciting for us was to add (assistant coach) Pati (Gandolfo) to our staff," Meeks-Rydell said. "(Assistant coach) Rob (Chilcoat) and I have been together for the last three years, and to sit in the office and get her input on where we wanted to go, I think that was what was most exciting to me – to see where we can take a team with a new, great addition to our coaching staff, and add our energy into what they have already contributed."

Four of the Jags' six returning letterwinners are seniors:  Ashlyn Roberts, Iva Durdanovic, Kelley Hartman and Lauren Hartman. Kelley Hartman earned Second-Team All-Sun Belt Conference honors in 2018, and was a 2019 Preseason All-Sun Belt selection. 

Last year, Hartman ranked tied for fifth in the league in service aces per set (0.31), and 10th in hitting percentage (.296). Roberts ranked tied for fourth in the Sun Belt in service aces per set (0.33) in league games last season, and finished eighth in the conference in service aces per set (0.29).

"We have all been super excited for this day for a really long time," Roberts said. "It really showed once we got in our groove. We may have started a little shaky, and of course we didn't want that, but I thought we did a really good job of recovering from that. We all have the same goal in mind, and we took a step in the right direction toward that goal today."

The Jaguars will hold morning and afternoon sessions during preseason practice, and will open the 2019 season Fri., Aug. 30, when they square off with Western Michigan at the Purdue-Fort Wayne Invitational in Fort Wayne, Ind.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with USAJaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at Twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the Rally Score Club, the volleyball specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All donations to the Rally Score Club go directly to support the South Alabama volleyball program. For more information on how you can join visit:  jaguarathleticfund.com/rallyscoreclub.