WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
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Big Ten CommunicationsPublished: 9/25/2024, Last updated: 9/25/2024
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Big Ten Weekly Volleyball Central - Sept. 25 - Oct. 1

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AVCA Top 25 Poll | Big Ten Weekly Release

  • Seven of the Big Ten’s 18 teams are mentioned in this week’s AVCA Coaches Poll, announced on Monday. The poll includes No. 2 Nebraska, No. 4 Penn State, No. 7 Wisconsin, No. 10 Purdue, No. 11 Oregon, No. 16 Minnesota and T-No. 20 USC. Washington received votes in this week’s poll. 
  • Big Ten play begins on Wednesday with a double-header on Big Ten Network, beginning at 7 p.m. ET when #10 Purdue hosts #4 Penn State followed by #16 Minnesota vs. #7 Wisconsin at 9 p.m. ET. 
  • ABC carried its first-ever regular season volleyball match on Sunday, featuring Nebraska and Louisville at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville. The match averaged 684,000 viewers, becoming the most-watched regular season volleyball match on any ESPN platform. 
  • Nebraska leads the nation with five ranked wins. Four of those wins came against top-10 opponents, including a recent pair of 3-0 victories against then-No. 2 Stanford and then-No. 4 Louisville. The sweep of Stanford was the first sweep over a top two team at home in program history and the first three-set win over Stanford since 2008.
  • Minnesota is first in the Big Ten and 11th nationally, averaging 17.29 digs/set. The Gophers have held opponents under .200 hitting for the last seven straight matches. 
  • On Friday, Sept. 20 against Troy, Sarah Franklin surpassed the 500 career digs milestone and has now surpassed 1,500 kills and 500 digs in her career. Franklin joins just two other Badgers who have achieved this feat: Amy Lee (1994-97) and Brittany Dolgner (2006-09).
  • Washington finished its non-conference slate a perfect 10-0, just one of seven teams across Division I with an unblemished record. The last time the Huskies went 10-0 in non-conference play, they went on to win the Pac-12 Conference Championship and advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. Washington embarks on its inaugural Big Ten season hosting Illinois on Friday and Indiana on Saturday. 
  • Purdue (2), USC (3) and Oregon (5) rank among the top-10 nationally in blocks per set. Purdue’s Raven Colvin currently leads the nation, averaging 2.03 blocks/set, the only Division I player to average over two blocks per set. As a team, the Boilermakers average 3.26 blocks/set, while USC averages 3.17 and Oregon at 3.11. 
  • Oregon enters Big Ten play on an eight-match win streak. With the win vs. Oregon State on Sunday, head coach Matt Ulmer now has 150 career wins. 
  • On Friday, BTN carries another double-header with #2 Nebraska vs. UCLA followed by #T20 USC vs. Ohio State. #12 Oregon hosts Indiana for its first Big Ten matchup live on FS1 at 10:30 p.m. ET. Additional TV and ranked matchups this week include No. 16 Minnesota vs. No. 10 Purdue on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. ET on BTN and No. 2 Nebraska hosts T-No. 20 USC on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET on BTN. Prior to the Huskers vs. Trojans, BTN will show Michigan vs. Rutgers at 5 p.m. ET. 
  • The Big Ten placed 13 players on the AVCA National Player of the Year Watch List, announced on Friday. 13 was the most of any conference, with 10 representing the ACC, eight from the SEC, three from the Big 12 and two from the Big East. Selected from the Big Ten were: Indiana’s Camryn Haworth, Minnesota’s Melani Shaffmaster, Nebraska’s Merritt Beason, Harper Murray, Bergen Reilly and Lexi Rodriguez, Oregon’s Mimi Colyer, Penn State’s Jess Mruzik, Purdue’s Chloe Chicoine and Eva Hudson, Wisconsin’s Anna Smrek, Carter Booth and Sarah Franklin.