NCAA Parity? Records of Final 4 teams from 1998 - 2016
Nov 30, 2017 14:48:05 GMT -5
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Post by nyline on Nov 30, 2017 14:48:05 GMT -5
Is there greater parity in Division 1 women’s volleyball in recent years than in the past?
The winners of the six NCAA Tournaments from 2011 to 2016 had more losses (26) than did the winners of the six NCAA Tournament from 2005 to 2010 (9). But that’s a very small sample size. And Penn State posted some very impressive records during the 2005 to 2010 period, coming close to perfection in 2008, with a 38-0 record and dropping only two sets all season (those two coming in the classic NCAA Semifinal match against Nebraska in Omaha), en route to winning a second consecutive NCAA Division 1 Women’s Volleyball National Championship. The 2009 Penn State team extended the Nittany Lions’ streak of consecutive sets without a loss to 141, before losing a set to Iowa at Rec Hall on October 2, 2009.
So, small sample size, and that outlier Penn State run of four consecutive national titles from 2007 to 2010 (hard to call it anything other than an outlier when no one else has won more than two in a row).
What about sets lost? Only four NCAA Champions in this sample dropped fewer than 10 sets in their Championship season — and two of those were Penn State teams during its four-year run — the Nittany Lions won 114 sets and dropped only 2 in 2008, and won 114 sets in 2009, while dropping only 8. In 1998, Long Beach State went 108-8, and in 2003, USC went 105-8. The most sets lost by a Final Four team through 2016? Wisconsin’s 2013 Finalist, with 53.
But you don’t need us to compare the statistics — you can do that for yourself by clicking the link below, which goes to a table that lists the records of all the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Final Four teams from 1998 on — total wins, total losses, sets won, and sets lost. The table is sortable (generally speaking) so you can sort by most wins, fewest losses, fewest sets lost, conference, etc. Though sometimes the listing is a bit out of whack.
Here's the link to the DigNittanyVolleyball post
The winners of the six NCAA Tournaments from 2011 to 2016 had more losses (26) than did the winners of the six NCAA Tournament from 2005 to 2010 (9). But that’s a very small sample size. And Penn State posted some very impressive records during the 2005 to 2010 period, coming close to perfection in 2008, with a 38-0 record and dropping only two sets all season (those two coming in the classic NCAA Semifinal match against Nebraska in Omaha), en route to winning a second consecutive NCAA Division 1 Women’s Volleyball National Championship. The 2009 Penn State team extended the Nittany Lions’ streak of consecutive sets without a loss to 141, before losing a set to Iowa at Rec Hall on October 2, 2009.
So, small sample size, and that outlier Penn State run of four consecutive national titles from 2007 to 2010 (hard to call it anything other than an outlier when no one else has won more than two in a row).
What about sets lost? Only four NCAA Champions in this sample dropped fewer than 10 sets in their Championship season — and two of those were Penn State teams during its four-year run — the Nittany Lions won 114 sets and dropped only 2 in 2008, and won 114 sets in 2009, while dropping only 8. In 1998, Long Beach State went 108-8, and in 2003, USC went 105-8. The most sets lost by a Final Four team through 2016? Wisconsin’s 2013 Finalist, with 53.
But you don’t need us to compare the statistics — you can do that for yourself by clicking the link below, which goes to a table that lists the records of all the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Final Four teams from 1998 on — total wins, total losses, sets won, and sets lost. The table is sortable (generally speaking) so you can sort by most wins, fewest losses, fewest sets lost, conference, etc. Though sometimes the listing is a bit out of whack.
Here's the link to the DigNittanyVolleyball post
But seriously, thanks for the very speedy insight and analysis.