Pitt Volleyball Stays No. 1 Despite Loss

Pitt Panthers volleyball stayed ranked No. 1, despite first loss of 2024.

Pitt Volleyball Celebrates Point Against Penn State / Courtesy of Pitt Athletics

PITTSBURGH -- Pitt Panthers volleyball suffered their first loss of the season, but still stays ranked No. 1 in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll.

They received 41 first place votes, with No. 2 Nebraska receiving 19 and No. 3 Penn State receiving one. This makes it six straight weeks that Pitt has held on the No. 1 ranking in the AVCA Coaches Poll.

The Panthers are 15-1 on the season and 5-1 in ACC play, as they split their home-and-away with the previously ranked No. 15 SMU Mustangs.

Pitt dominated SMU at home on Oct. 9, with a quick sweep in three straight sets, their 14th of the season. They hit .427, their fourth highest mark of the season and SMU hit .109, their lowest clip of 2024.

The Panthers then traveled to Dallas to face the Mustangs on Oct. 12, as both teams are travel partners and play each other twice in four days.

Pitt would take a 2-1 set lead in the match, but SMU battled, getting the fourth set and then winning in five sets, 15-9.

That was the first five set match for Pitt this season, as they previously only dropped one set, to Boston College on the road on Oct. 4.

AVCA Coaches Poll

The top 10 teams stay put for the second straight week, with Louisville, Stanford, Creighton, Texas, Kansas, Wisconsin and Purdue ranking No. 4 through No. 10.

SMU moved up three spots to No. 12, the fourth highest ACC team, while Kentucky dropped down to No. 15 after Texas swept them.

Georgia Tech rose three spots to No. 17 from No. 20 with sweeps over Virginia and Virginia Tech at home last weekend. Florida State rose two places to No. 19 from No. 21, losing in five sets to No. 4 Louisville and defeating Notre Dame in four sets, both at home.

North Carolina and Virginia both received votes for their great starts to the season. North Carolina is 13-2 overall and 5-1 in ACC play, while Virginia is 14-3 overall and 4-2 in ACC play.

Pitt Volleyball Schedule Ahead

Pitt will host the two other ACC newcomers this weekend in Cal on Oct. 18 and then No. 5 Stanford on Oct. 20, who both joined from the Pac-12.

The matchup for the Panthers vs. the Cardinal takes place at 3:00 p.m. on ESPN, the Panthers' first and only game on the channel this season. The program also announced a sell-out at Fitzgerald Field House, which should see a crowd of around 2,800-2,900 fans in attendance.

Pitt is 0-4 in Stanford, last playing 30 years ago in 1994 at home, which Stanford won in a sweep. They defeated Cal in the sole match in 1981.

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