It’s no surprise that Badgers volleyball remains on top of the AVCA polls, but there is some intrigue with the rankings behind the Wisconsin Badgers. The Badgers continued their streak of sweeps this week, winning matches against No. 22 Ohio State and Michigan via the sweep.
The latest AVCA/TARAFLEX Division I Women’s Volleyball Poll finds two new faces in the top 5: No. 4 @WSUCougarsVB and No. 5 @OregonVB.
See the full poll at https://t.co/IlOc3gkpWb.#WeAreAVCA pic.twitter.com/opL9ZJUBaO
— AVCA (@AVCAVolleyball) October 2, 2023
Movement Behind Badgers Volleyball
In last week’s Top 25, the Wisconsin Badgers had 1592 points to lead the nation, along with 58 first-place votes. Behind them was Nebraska with 6 first-place votes and 1531 points. After this past week of play, Nebraska has kept pace with Badgers volleyball, also opening the season 13-0. This week, they’ve lost a couple of first-place votes, while the Badgers gained a couple to land at 4 and 60, respectively. The Badgers gained 3 points to get to 1595, while Nebraska added seven points to get to 1538. Nebraska and Badgers volleyball square off on October 21st, and the No. 1 ranking might be on the line at that point.
Other Movements in the Top 25
Washington State continues to climb the ladder with their 14-1 record to open the season. They’re up to No. 4 after a preseason ranking of 21. Oregon climbed into the Top 5 after going 1-1 this week, jumping over Louisville, who also went 1-1.
Iowa State found their way back into the Top 25 after tying Auburn. Iowa State split their two games with No. 18 Baylor this week, while Auburn lost to No. 14 Arkansas, likely causing their fall from 24 to tie for 25th.
Florida was the biggest loser this week, dropping from 4th in rankings all the way down to 9th with their 11-2 record. The Gators dropped a game to an unranked opponent in Texas A&M while Pittsburgh captured two wins, and Texas captured two wins against No. 10 (then No. 9) ranked BYU to improve to 9-3 on the season.