La Verne, East Texas Baptist, and Wisconsin-Oshkosh top three in DIII women’s volleyball: AVCA

California’s La Verne University is sitting atop the American Volleyball Coaches Association week four poll.

The AVCA poll, released earlier this week, is a how Division III coaches view the success of teams throughout the Fall women’s volleyball season.

The Leopards are currently undefeated with a 12-0 record.

Senior outside hitter Mya Ray has had amazing performances. Ray stole the top spot in digs, kills, and points for two out of the last three matches. She is a highly awarded athlete, winning Athlete of the Week three times this season. 

After a three-day sweep during the University of Washington-Oshkosh’s invitational, the players are preparing for their upcoming match against California Lutheran University, the Leopards' rivals.

East Texas Baptist University are No. 2 with a 15-0 record. The Tigers have remained undefeated, improving on last season’s amazing record of 29-2 overall. 

Senior outside hitter Graycee Mosley is a 14-time American Southwest Conference (ASC) Player of the Week. She is currently leading her team in kills (192) and points (223). 

Wisconsin-Oshkosh are No. 3. The team’s current record is 16-2.  

The standout Titan is Junior pin hitter, Grace Juergens. Juergens has topped the scoreboard in points and kills multiple matches in a row. She has 243 points and 206 kills overall this season and is second on her team for both.  

Wisconsin-Whitewater are No. 4 with a current record of 15-2. The Warhawks are preparing for their fifth invitational this season. 

The team’s junior setter Aubrie Krzus, has had many standout games this past week. Krzus has a hitting percentage of .378, ranking second on the team. She was named the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Newcomer of the Year her freshman year. 

The Warhawks are currently preparing for the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Invite. The first match is on September 26 against the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.

Wisconsin-Eau Claire are No. 5, which was the biggest jump on the poll this week from last. They are 14-1 on the season.

Bolded teams have moved ranks higher or lower from week to week.

25. Tufts, 11-1, received votes

24. Wesleyan (Conn.), 9-1, 22

23. Dubuque, 15-2, 24

22. Virginia Wesleyan, 16-0, 23

21. Marietta, 9-4, 14

20. Gustavus Adolphus, 14-2, 21

19. Ithaca, 10-3, 19

18. Otterbein, 14-1, 20

17. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, 8-3, 17

16. MIT, 10-3, 16

15. Washington & Lee, 13-2, 11

14. Berry, 13-2, 15

13. Hope, 11-4, 18

12. Colby, 11-1, 13

11. Trinity (Texas), 12-3, 12

10. Washington-St. Louis, 12-2, 5

9. Johns Hopkins, 12-3, 6

8. Illinois Wesleyan, 13-1, 7

7. Emory, 11-2, 9

6. Juniata, 11-2, 8

5. Washington-Eau Claire, 13-1, 10

4. Wisconsin-Whitewater, 14-2, 4

3. Wisconsin-Oshkosh, 14-2, 3

2. East Texas Baptist, 15-0, 2

1. La Verne, 11-0, 1

Thank you for reading Female Athlete News. Lily Dorf is a student-intern at Penn State University.