Italian Serie A1 women’s volleyball preview, a look at all 14 teams

Now that the international team season is over (Volleyball Nations League, FIVB World Championship), the players have joined their pro teams. Many of the best are in Italy, where the Italian Serie A1 leads the way. There are 14 teams and they include many American stars. Here is a preview of the women’s league:

Imoco Conegliano

Conegliano is the four-time defending championunder head coach Daniele Santarelli. Conegliano will be sporting several new faces this season as the Panthers seek to replace some legendary players. 

Paola Egonu, Miriam Sylla, and Raphaela Folie have all been mainstays of the team for several seasons, but all have found new clubs. There is no easy way to replace Egonu, but Swedish star Isabelle Haak is a good start. Haak returns to Italy for the first time since 2019 after three seasons at VakifBank in Turkey. Haak played a part in Imoco’s two losses in finals last year, the CEV Champions League and the Club World Championship. 

Canadian Alexa Gray and Kelsey Robinson Cook will compete at outside. Cook returns to Conegliano after playing for the club from 2015-2017. Gray, the second top-scoring outside hitter in the league last year, joins from Busto Arsizio. Alessia Gennari joins Imoco from Milano, competing alongside Gray, Cook, and former Stanford great Kathryn Plummer at outside hitter. Middle blockers Marina Lubian and Federica Squarcini will compete to replace Folie. Joanna Wolosz, Robin De Kruijf, and Monica De Gennaro all return as part of Conegliano’s infamous core group.

Departures: Egonu (VakifBank), Sylla (Milano), Folie (Milano), Megan Courtney (USA, inactive), Giorgia Frosini (Bergamo), Giulia Gennari (Bergamo), Hristina Vuchkova (BUL, China), Lara Caravello (Cuneo), Loveth Omoruyi (Busto Arsizio)
New: Roberta Carraro (Martignacco), Haak (SWE, Vakifbank), Robinson-Cook (USA , Queenseis), Gray (CAN, Busto Arsizio), Gennari (Milano), Lubian (Scandicci), Squarcini (Cuneo), Eleonora Furlan (Trentino), Ylenia Pericati (Pinerolo)
Returning: Plummer (USA), De Gennaro, Wolosz (POL), Sarah Fahr, De Kruijf (NED)

Milano (formerly Vero Volley Monza)

Milano finished second last year, its best season ever. The name may be a thing of the past, Vero Volley’s high ambitions will remain intact.

Milano has plenty of new players in Jordan Thompson, Sylla, Folie, Letizia Camera, Pauline Martin, and Jovana Stevanovic. Stevanovic returned to the Serbian national team this past summer and won the World…