Nebraska women’s volleyball keep coaches honest, remain unbeaten on the season: AVCA poll
Nebraska’s Harper Murray, Bergan Reilly, and Olivia Mauch continue to execute slick moves on the volleyball court.
For the fifth week in a row, Nebraska women’s volleyball is owning the No. 1 spot in the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
The AVCA poll is released weekly throughout the Fall women’s volleyball season. Since preseason, coaches have been accurate about Nebraska’s ability to set the pace.
The Cornhuskers, in week four, were 10-0. They are now 11-0 after beating Michigan 3-0 in a BIG10 matchup on Wednesday.
Harper Murray, Bergen Reilly, and Olivia Mauch have had dominating performances.
.At No. 2 is the Texas with a record of 9-0. The Longhorns have continued to add victories to their winning streak, keeping them in the No. 2 spot for the fourth week in a row.
Texas has a newcomer who led its team to victory in its last match against Baylor University.
Freshman outside hitter Cari Spears helped the team achieve another win with her amazing attacks. Spears’ hitting percentage reached its highest at .654, and scoring 20.5 points with 18 kills.
Tied for No. 3 is the Kentucky, climbing back up after its No. 6 placement last week. Kentucky is entering week 4 with a record of 7-2, unlike last season, when the Wildcats came in at No. 12.
They are now 8-2 after beating South Carolina 3-0 on Wednesday.
With the help of senior outside hitter Ava Hudson, Kentucky was able to bring home another win. Hudson was previously at Purdue and brought her drive with her this season to Kentucky.
She has racked up a total of 133 kills and 142 points so far this season.
Tied at No. 3 is Stanford, which has kept its spot in the top 5 for three weeks straight. Stanford University’s current record is 9-2, with its next big match against Virginia.
Stanford versus Virginia starts at 10 a.m. on Saturday.
Stanford’s freshman libero Spencer Etzler showed her skills this past weekend, coming in first place on her team with digs each game. Before Stanford, Etzler was the team captain two seasons in a row for her high school team and has racked up 135 digs in her first season.
Coming in at No. 5 is Pittsburgh. Pitt has held its No. 5 spot for two weeks in a row, bringing its record to 8-2. The Panthers are currently on an eight-match winning streak.
The Panther who has continued to stand out is junior Olivia Babcock. When Pittsburgh last competed against Penn State, Babcock dominated the court. She topped her team’s leaderboard in digs (13), kills (16) and points (20) during the match.
25. North Carolina 7-2, 25
24. Miami (Florida) 10-1, Received Votes
23. Utah 8-3, 20
22. Tennessee 9-1, 24
21. Missouri 8-3, 22
20. Baylor 6-3, 21
19. Florida 5-4, 15
18. Kansas 9-5, 17
17. Southern California 9-1, 19
16. Creighton 7-5, 18
15. Penn State 6-4, 13
14. BYU 12-0, 16
13. Texas A&M 8-2, 14
12. Minnesota 10-1, 12
11. SMU 8-2, 10
10. Purdue 9-1, 11
9. TCU 10-2, 9
8. Arizona State 9-2, 4
7. Wisconsin 7-1, 7
6. Louisville 7-2, 3
5. Pittsburgh 8-2, 5
3. Stanford 9-2, 4
3. Kentucky 7-2, 6
2. Texas 8-0, 2
1. Nebraska 10-0, 1
Thank you for reading Female Athlete News. Lily Dorf is a student-intern at Penn State University.