Time for our weekly Power 10 college volleyball rankings. We are just two weeks into the season, and we have had some incredible matchups. No. 1 Texas took down Minnesota in a mid-week battle, Minnesota took down Florida in a great matchup, and then over in Louisville, a lot went down. San Diego took down Ohio State in a straight sweep. Louisville took down San Diego ... and then Ohio State took down Louisville. That is not confusing at all, right!?
Either way, let's take a look at this week's Power 10 rankings after all the madness:
1. Texas
Not much explanation is needed here. The Texas Longhorns are the clear No. 1 team in the nation right now. They are not only undefeated, but they are taking down top-notch teams and have a strong non-conference schedule. All four wins are over teams ranked in the top 15, including three in the top 10. Following the two wins over Ohio State in the first week, they took down Minnesota and Stanford in a sweep. I am not sure that anyone is quite on Texas' level right now. Logan Eggleston notched 22 kills and FOUR aces in the win over Minnesota, and Saige Ka'aha'aina-Torres went off against Stanford with 43 assists, 11 digs, two kills and one block. Those four wins though just might be the toughest teams the Longhorns face all season. They got through it unscathed in just the first two weeks of play.
2. Nebraska
If anyone can compete with Texas, it just might be Nebraska. The Huskers have yet to drop a single set all season — a 5-0 record with five straight sweeps. The only reason they are below Texas is because of strength of schedule and quality wins so far. But not to worry, since the Huskers play in one of the toughest conferences in volleyball. All those tough games will be here before we know it. Madi Kubik and Whitney Lauenstein are leading the way offensively, and Kaitlyn Hord leads in blocks.
3. Minnesota
The Gophers move into the No. 3 spot for me after an impressive start to the 2022 season. Here is why: I know they lost to Texas mid-week but it took four sets and a really hard-fought battle. They also followed it up with a huge win over a gritty Florida team that was firing on all cylinders. I am super impressed with the talent on Minnesota's roster this year. There isn't a clear superstar like they had with Stephanie Samedy, but they have so many contributors, and it is working. Taylor Landfair and Jenna Wenaas have been so consistent offensively at the pins, they have a strong defense led by CC McGraw, and then they have a lot of depth off the bench. For example, Naya Gros came off the bench for the Gophers and was a huge spark in the win over Florida. So despite the loss to Texas, I think this is the No. 3 team in the nation right now.
4. Georgia Tech
I moved the Yellow Jackets up since Louisville lost to Ohio State. The Jackets remain undefeated on the season with a 5-0 record. They get the boost to No. 4 in my rankings ahead of a massive week — they will host BYU, Ohio State and Arkansas for the Georgia Tech Classic. That is when we will really see what this team is made of. We know they have one of the best players in the nation in Julia Bergmann — she finished the latest win with a match-high 23 kills at a .400 clip, 10 digs, two aces and a block. That is a heavy load to carry. Can she do it against some top-ranked teams? We will see.
5. Louisville
I dropped the Cardinals to No. 5 following its loss to Ohio State over the weekend. But, they remain above Wisconsin when I compared both of their losses and took into consideration the Cards' big win over San Diego. San Diego is a team that I have ranked in my top 10, so Louisville should get proper credit for taking them down. Claire Chaussee and Aiko Jones had 15 kills apiece in the win over the Toreros. But, they were outhit .372 to .248 in the loss to Ohio State.
6. Wisconsin
The Badgers are at No. 6 still in this Power 10 ranking. They are now 3-1 on the season after a four-set win over Marquette and then a sweep over High Point. Devyn Robinson led with 15 kills in the most recent win and Sarah Franklin followed with 14. The Badgers have two big matchups I am really looking forward to before conference play hits against Kentucky and Florida.
7. Purdue
I have the Purdue Boilermakers at No. 7 after an undefeated start to the season. They are now 6-0 with a five-set win over Utah fueled by Raven Colvin and Eva Hudson. Both had 18 kills in the win and Colvin added five service aces that were crucial to the win. But I will say, this is tentative — they will be headed to Louisville next week for a tough one.
8. San Diego
San Diego remains in my Power 10. I threw the Toreros in last week after the big win over Pitt in five sets. This was knowing that they were headed to Louisville to face both the Cardinals and Ohio State. Two top-10 teams. Well, San Diego did drop the first match against Louisville but took down Ohio State in dominant fashion, sweeping the Buckeyes. Such an impressive win — this team is competing at such a high level right now. Grace Frohling leads the way offensively and has been getting some well-deserved national attention.
9. Pittsburgh
Pitt has made it into my rankings for the first time this season. They lost to San Diego in the first week, but last week they took down BYU in four sets, warranting their entrance into the top 10. Valeria Vazquez Gomez led the team with 16 kills on .400 hitting in the win, tying a career-high. And Courtney Buzzerio posted 15 kills on .357 hitting.
10. Ohio State
Ohio State is hanging in there!!! I definitely thought they would be moving out this week after they fell in straight sets to San Diego with a match against the Cardinals looming. But at last, the Buckeyes pulled off a huge upset over Louisville. They hit over .300 as a team and Rylee Rader finally came alive with 14 kills on .500 hitting. The Buckeyes had better passing and fewer errors all around so they hold on. What a tough non-conference schedule…
