Pitt Volleyball Remains Ranked No. 1

Pitt Panthers volleyball remains ranked No. 1 in the AVCA Coaches Poll.

No. 1 Pitt Volleyball Celebrates a Point in their win vs. No. 23 USC in Los Angeles / Courtesy of Pitt Athletics

PITTSBURGH -- Pitt Panthers volleyball continues to play well this season and stays ranked No. 1 in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll.

They received 50 first place votes, with No. 2 Nebraska receiving 10 and No. 3 Penn State receiving one, an improvement from 41 first place votes last week. This makes it seven straight weeks that Pitt has held on the No. 1 ranking in the AVCA Coaches Poll.

The Panthers are 17-1 on the season and 7-1 in ACC play, and swept both the Cal Golden Bears on Oct. 18 and the No. 5 Stanford Cardinal on Oct. 20 in front of sold out crowds at Fitzgerald Field House.

Pitt held Cal to a season-low -.048 hitting and Stanford to .090 hitting, making it nine times that they've held an opponent below a .100 clip and six times in the ACC. They also made 13 total blocks against both opponents, the most blocks they've made in a three-set match.

AVCA Coaches Poll

The only change in the top 10 comes with Wisconsin taking the No. 8 spot over Kansas, who drops to No. 9, despite not losing this past weekend. Wisconsin defeated No. 11 Oregon in four sets at home on Oct. 18.

North Carolina enters the AVCA Coaches Poll for the first time this season, taking over for Auburn who dropped out. They are 15-2 this season and tied with Pitt for second place in the ACC with a 7-1 record, their lone loss coming in four sets to rival NC State in Raleigh.

They face No. 19 Florida State and Miami, who received votes, at home this weekend, giving them a chance to prove their worth and get their first ranked win in 2024.

Georgia Tech remains at No. 17 with four straight wins and two vs. Clemson, home-and-away. FSU won in five sets vs. Boston College and swept Syracuse in their road matches this past weekend. Virginia also received votes, losing in five sets to UNC on Oct. 20.

Pitt Volleyball Schedule Ahead

Pitt will face rival No. 4 Louisville on Oct 25 at the Petersen Events Center for a 7:00 p.m. start. They also host Notre Dame on Oct. 27 at Fitzgerald Field House for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off.

The Cardinals come in to this match 16-2 overall and 8-0 in the ACC, leading the conference. Their only losses on the season come to then ranked No. 4 Penn State Nittany Lions in a sweep on the road on Sept. 3 and to then ranked No. 5 Nebraska at home on Sept. 22, also a sweep.

They swept No. 5 Stanford at home on Sept. 29 and their closest ACC match came against then ranked No. 21 Florida State, as they won in five sets.

Pitt reverse swept Louisville twice last season, with the first time on Nov. 18, 2023 at the Petersen Events Center, which earned them a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Pitt then did it again in the Elite Eight at Fitzgerald Field House, giving them their third straight Final Four appearance, the only team to do so.

This match is crucial for Pitt to stay No. 1 in the poll and hold onto a top spot in the NCAA Tournament, while Louisville will want to move up the polls themselves and ensure home-court advantage through the entire postseason, with the Final Four taking place in their city.

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