Binghamton University volleyball fans, enjoy this while you can.

Let me be clear before I start. In no way am I knocking recruiting for volleyball or the younger players on the team. I mean, junior Julie Chambers and sophomore Alex Roland have surpassed expectations and filled their roles perfectly, while freshman Xiomara Ortiz consistently stands out in the box scores.

But there’s no arguing that the stars on this team are seniors Michelle McDonough and Anna Lejina. In case you aren’t sure, just look at where they rank in the conference in kills per set (in conference play only):

2008: Lejina No. 1, McDonough No. 2

2009: McDonough No. 1, Lejina No. 4

2010: McDonough No. 2, Lejina No. 4

On top of that, you can add eight conference Player of the Week honors, three first-team all-conference selections, one second-team all-conference selection and an all-rookie team selection. That kind of consistent excellence by a pair of teammates over such a long period of time is something to marvel at. And it was only a year earlier, in 2007, that not a single Bearcat even cracked the top 10 in the category.

It’s no coincidence that the ascension of these two Bearcats coincided with the rise of the team as a whole. After a fourth-place 7-5 year in 2007, Binghamton finished second to Albany in 2008 with a 9-3 record, and in 2009 the Bearcats won the America East tournament for the first time in history ‘ and against three-time defending champion and bitter rival Albany, to boot.

And so here we are in 2010, the two cornerstones of BU volleyball now seniors leading a team that is as successful as ever. On Friday, the Bearcats earned a win over the perennial powerhouse Great Danes on the road in Albany. Not only did that end an eight-game regular season losing streak against the Great Danes and give the Bearcats a share of first place, it also symbolized how far the Bearcats have come in just a few years. Just a couple years ago this win was unimaginable; now it’s reality. Fittingly enough, Lejina and McDonough each had match-high 16 kills in that victory.

Not that the coaches in the conference are surprised anymore. The Bearcats were picked in the America East Preseason Coaches’ Poll as the favorite to finish first this year, the second straight year they’ve earned such respect from the coaches.

And while it makes me proud as a Bearcat to be able to write all this, I also have to stop and wonder: Is this the last time we see a stretch like this for BU volleyball for several more years? Players like Lejina and McDonough aren’t easy to find, and it’s even rarer to get two of them on a team at once.

Looking at Binghamton’s roster, there are no obvious replacements for the two outside hitters. On the season, McDonough averages 3.94 kills per set and Lejina has 3.71. Alex Roland is third on the team in kills per set, but she’s a middle blocker. Next up is Sandra DeVito, who is an outside hitter but also a senior. After that is sophomore outside hitter Iva Partaleva with 1.03 kills per set, followed by another senior in Mercedes Montford.

Again, this isn’t to say that it isn’t possible that players won’t step up and shock the conference next year. Lejina came over from Latvia and was an immediate star; McDonough posted just 2.66 kills per set in her first year, which led the team but would be a disappointing stat line for her now. Two-time America East Coach of the Year Glenn Kiriyama is in his 12th season with Binghamton, and considering he brought in talents like Lejina and McDonough and Roland and Chambers, not to mention Bearcat stars of the past, it’s fair to say he knows what he’s doing when it comes to building a team.

But as many successful teams in every sport have learned, the future is impossible to predict. Talent comes and goes, and teams rise and fall accordingly. It’s difficult to build a consistently successful squad, or even just to have players you can count on to step up in every single match. The Bearcats have been fortunate enough to have experienced both for the last few years. Now, as Lejina and McDonough try to carry Binghamton to a conference championship for their final time with BU, let’s just stop and appreciate just how fortunate we are to have been able to call them Bearcats.