Nebraska volleyball is back to where it started – at least in terms of preseason rankings.
The Huskers are back to their highest rating of the season, as NU received one first-place vote to garner the No. 2 spot in the latest AVCA Top 25 rankings. Pittsburgh received the rest of the 60 first-place votes to claim the top spot after its 9-0 start.
Nebraska (10-1) earned its spot after back-to-back sweeps of top five teams last week, taking down then-rated No. 2 Stanford 3-0 on Wednesday night while sweeping No. 4 Louisville on the road Sunday. Stanford (8-1) dropped to No. 3 while Louisville (8-2) is fifth.
Nebraska has now faced seven opponents featured in the top 25 of the latest polls, having only suffered one loss to ACC-foe SMU. The Mustangs (8-3) remained in the top 25 but dropped one spot to No. 23. Nebraska’s in-state rival Creighton (9-2) earned its highest ranking in school history, jumping three spots to No. 6. NU downed the Jays in a five-set thriller in early September.
The Huskers season-opening opponent, Kentucky (6-5), dropped down to No. 12. Arizona State (11-1) remained at No. 14, and TCU (8-2) rose one spot to No. 22. Nebraska won in four sets over Kentucky and TCU, while sweeping the Sun Devils at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
The Big Ten proved its conference strength in the latest poll as well, showcasing seven teams in the Top 25 and five teams in the Top 10. Nebraska led the pack, while Penn State (No. 4, 10-1), Wisconsin (No. 7, 6-3), and Purdue (No. 10, 9-2) rounded out the Top Ten. Oregon (8-1) rose one spot to No. 11 and Minnesota (7-3) claimed No. 16.
Former Nebraska standout Ally Batenhorst’s USC Trojans tied for the No. 20 with Tennessee. Washington received votes to be the first team on the outside looking into the top 25.
The Atlantic Coast Conference is tied for the most top 25 teams, including No. 1 Pittsburgh, No. 3 Stanford, No. 5 Louisville, No. 13 Georgia Tech, No. 18 Florida State, No. 23 SMU, and No. 25 Miami (FL). The Big 12 Conference has five programs featured: No. 9 Kansas, No. 14 Arizona State, No. 17 BYU, No. 19 Baylor, and No. 23 SMU. The SEC includes four teams, including the former preseason No. 1: No. 8 Texas, No. 12 Kentucky, No. 15 Florida, and No. 20 Tennessee.
As of Monday’s rankings, Nebraska will have seven contests remaining on its schedule against top 25 opponents. After the Big Ten opener on Friday night against UCLA, the Huskers welcome No. 20 USC to Lincoln for a Sunday night battle.
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