By the end of the 2024 season, the Roosevelt Lakers looked far different on the court than they did when their inaugural Division II season began. Now the challenge is for the Lakers to continue that momentum as they head into 2025 with a deep roster that includes plenty of student-athletes used to the Division II grind. Roosevelt worked hard in the offseason to implement the lessons it learned from last year as it tries to qualify for the conference tournament in year two.
The GLIAC saw a glimpse of Aleksandra Barac’s potential at the tail end of last season after she missed the first half of the season. She had double-digit kills in five of her last six matches, including four matches with at least 15 kills, as Roosevelt went 2-4 while also taking a set off then-No. 12 Grand Valley State. Barac averaged nearly three kills per set in her 17 appearances, a number that shot up to nearly 3.5 kills per set in the final six matches.
Roosevelt also returns a pair of experienced setters with senior Zoe Hutchinson and junior Isa Grana, who combined for more than 730 assists while splitting time for most of the year. The Lakers have the same luxury at libero with the trio of Catarina Calabrese, Cydney Martinez and Regan Miessler having all played a lot of volleyball for the Green & White. Martinez led the team last season with 249 digs and Miessler added 1.3 digs per set while Calabrese battled the injury bug. Calabrese had 209 digs as a freshman before injuries limited her the past two seasons, but she’s still played in 166 sets over 49 matches for the Lakers.
