Pitt Volleyball Still Ranked No. 1 Team

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

Pitt Volleyball Celebrates after a point / Courtesy of Pitt Athletics

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers held on to their No. 1 ranking for a second consecutive week, after a successful trip out to California.

Pitt swept No. 23 USC in Los Angeles on Sept. 11 for their second ranked win of the season, after taking down then ranked No. 10 Oregon in Eugene on Aug. 30. They also defeated good mid-major opponents in Pepperdine and UC Santa Barbara, Sept. 13-14, respectively, to stay undefeated on the season.

The Panthers are also the only team in Division I that has not dropped a set so far, sweeping all six matches they've played in so far. They've held all six opponents below a .200 hitting percentage, with three below .100, while hitting over .300 in four matches themselves.

Big Match Awaits Pitt Volleyball

Pitt will face rival No. 3 Penn State in the Keystone Classic at the Petersen Events Center on Sept. 18, with the ACC Network broadcasting the match with a tip-off set for 7:00 p.m.

This is the highest ranked the Panthers have faced in the regular season since No. 2 Louisville at home on Oct. 23, 2022, which the Panthers won in five sets.

Penn State is undefeated themselves at 8-0. They have ranked wins over then ranked No. 15 Tennessee in four sets on the road on Aug. 30, a sweep of No. 4 Louisivlle at home on Sept. 3 and a reverse sweep of then ranked No. 9 Kentucky on the road on Sept. 6.

This is the first matchup between the two schools since a four-set win for the Panthers over the Nittany Lions in the Second Round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament, en route to their first ever Final Four appearance.

The last regular season matchup between Pitt and Penn State took place in 2019, with a home-and-away over a weekend. Pitt stunned Penn State by sweeping them on the road for the first time ever on Sept. 20, but would lose in five sets at the Petersen Events Center on Sept. 22.

Pitt and Penn State did play home-and-away during the spring season, which helped set up the rivalry to come back in the regular season.

AVCA Coaches Poll

Pitt received 32 first place votes, an improvement from 29 last week, and stay ahead of ACC newcomer Stanford, who are also undefeated and received 24 first placed votes.

Louisville and Nebraska remain at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively. Texas falling to Stanford on the road drops them to No. 8 at 3-3, while Purdue, undefeated at 7-0, and Wisconsin, 3-3, moved up to No. 6 and No. 7, respectively.

Creighton stays at No. 9 after road losses to both Louisivlle and Nebraska in five sets, while Kansas, undefeated at 7-0, moves up to No. 10 ahead of Kentucky, who fall to 6-3 and No. 11after a loss to Purdue.

ACC teams in the top 25 include Georgia Tech, who moved up two spots to No. 13, after sweeping then ranked No. 13 Florida at home, and ACC incomer SMU at No. 22, making the ranking for the first time this season. Miami dropped out of the top 25 following losses to unranked Ohio State and Wright State in Columbus, Ohio.

Make sure you bookmark Inside the Panthers for the latest news, exclusive interviews, recruiting coverage, and more!

• Pitt QB Receives National Award Honor
• Pitt Depth Chart vs. Youngstown State
• Pitt WBB Hosts 2025 Guard Duo on Visit
• Pitt Snap Count vs. West Virginia Revealed
• Pitt Receives Votes in Coaches/AP Polls

Follow Inside the Panthers on Twitter: @InsidePitt