VOLLEYBALL:

Baylor, WKU win 5-set thrillers in a day full of championship action

Relive the entire 5th set of Baylor-Pepperdine

View the full bracket
volleyball-women-d1 flag

Jacob Myers | NCAA.com | September 13, 2018

Women's volleyball rankings: BYU ranked No. 1 for first time since 1986

Watch the best in women's volleyball take the court

There were upsets galore over the weekend with No. 1 going down for the second consecutive week and previous No. 15 Baylor shockingly losing to UT-Rio Grande Valley after defeating then-No. 2 Wisconsin. All in all, there were 10 games in which a ranked team lost to a lower-ranked or unranked opponent.

Here are five takeaways from the new coaches poll.

RELATED: Former Western Kentucky All-American ‘overwhelmed’ with support after leukemia diagnosis

Full AVCA coaches top 25 poll:

RANK SCHOOL POINTS RECORD PREVIOUS
1 BYU (54) 1590 8-0 3
2 Stanford (10) 1543 6-1 4
3 Texas 1410 5-1 6
4 Nebraska 1369 6-1 7
5 Penn St. 1345 6-1 5
6 Wisconsin 1247 5-1 2
7 Minnesota 1229 5-2 1
8 Illinois 1169 8-0 11
9 Pittsburgh 1058 9-0 13
10 Creighton 867 6-3 14
11 Florida 826 5-3 8
12 Oregon 817 5-3 18
13 Washington 762 5-2 12
14 Cal Poly 697 7-1 22
15 Purdue 667 8-0 19
T-16 Southern California 641 6-3 10
T-16 UCLA 641 4-2 9
18 Baylor 592 6-3 15
19 Michigan 539 9-0 20
20 Kentucky 455 4-4 16
21 Marquette 427 7-2 25
22 Washington St. 332 7-0 23
23 San Diego 207 2-4 16
24 Utah 93 7-2 21
25 Alabama 53 9-0 NR

BYU new No. 1 followed by Stanford

After defeating then-No. 1 Stanford more than a week ago, BYU’s case for the top spot in the top-25 rankings was only made stronger with wins against ranked foes USC and Marquette. With No. 1 Minnesota and No. 2 Wisconsin losing over the weekend, the Cougars made the jump from No. 3 to No. 1 for their first top ranking in 32 years. Stanford, however, had the most impressive week with wins against No. 5 Penn State and No. 1 Minnesota. There are 53 points that separate the Cardinal and the Cougars. Texas is more than 100 points behind Stanford at No. 3.

MORE: Stanford upsets No. 1 Minnesota to cap Big Ten/Pac-12 challenge

Alabama makes first-ever appearance

There’s a number next to the name for the first time in Crimson Tide volleyball history. Coach Ed Allen has transformed the Alabama program since he was named head coach in 2010. The program hadn’t had a winning season since 2005 when he took over and has had a winning season each year, including a program-best 26 wins in 2014 and two NCAA tournament appearances. The Crimson Tide are 9-0 and have their first ranked matchup this week against Purdue.

Big Ten adds another team to top 10

Yes, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Penn State all lost for the first time, but the Illinois Fighting Illini jumped to No. 8, giving the Big Ten an astounding five members in the top 10, all of which are ranked 4 through 8. Also, keep an eye on No. 15 Purdue and No. 19 Michigan. The Wolverines and Boilermakers are the two remaining unbeaten teams in the Big Ten. Michigan has yet to lose a set and has two games against Notre Dame before opening Big Ten play against their first ranked opponent, No. 4 Nebraska. Purdue has No. 25 Alabama this coming week.

Pittsburgh and Cal Poly rewarded for statement wins

The Pitt Panthers continue to set program highs for their ranking. After defeating No. 12 Washington twice for the first time in program history, the Panthers have their first-ever top-10 ranking. Pitt is also the only loss on Cal Poly’s schedule, which probably isn’t what many thought following two games against No. 9 UCLA. However, the Mustangs took down the Bruins in four sets twice and had the biggest jump this week, from No. 22 to No. 14.

MORE: Pittsburgh sweeps No. 12 Washington to earn best start since 1983

Baylor drops after wild week

Nothing against UT-Rio Grande Valley, but Baylor probably thought No. 2 Wisconsin was going to be its toughest test on the weekend. The Bears upset the Badgers in four sets and looked poised for a top-10 ranking. But UTRGV spoiled those thoughts and stunned the Bears, which ultimately dropped three spots. Big 12 player of the year candidate Yossiana Pressley had 29 kills but 15 hitting errors for the Bears in that match.

MORE: Baylor loses in five sets to UT-Rio Grande Valley

Other notable takeaways:

The Pac-12 was all over the place in the third week of the season. Stanford and Oregon both beat No. 1 Minnesota and both made moves in the poll. Oregon lost to Penn State while the Cardinal beat the Nittany Lions, but the Ducks still jumped six spots to No. 12. UCLA and Southern California dropped seven and six spots, respectively, to be tied at 16. The Trojans lost to BYU and Marquette, which jumped from No. 25 to No. 21.

MORE: No. 10 USC loses to No. 25 Marquette in five sets

Minnesota and Wisconsin dropped to No. 7 and No. 6 after losses. In the end, the movement right now in the Big Ten and Pac-12 doesn’t matter a ton, given most of those teams will play each other twice.

The past 10 Naismith National Players of the Year, ranked

These are the past 10 Naismith National Players of the Year, ranked by NCAA.com's Andy Katz.
READ MORE

BYU named NCAA.com Women's Basketball Team of the Week

BYU was named NCAA.com Women's Basketball Team of the Week on Feb. 16, 2021.
READ MORE

Men's college volleyball: No. 8 UCLA takes down No. 1 BYU in upset

No. 8 UCLA traveled to Provo and knocked off top-ranked BYU in four sets on Thursday night.
READ MORE

Subscribe To Email Updates

Enter your information to receive emails about offers, promotions from NCAA.com and our partners