2018 AVCA Poll Notes: Sept. 3, 2018
Sept 5, 2018 12:17:32 GMT -5
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Post by lionsfan on Sept 5, 2018 12:17:32 GMT -5
Here’s a look at some notes from the past week and the upcoming week, based on the new AVCA Coaches Poll released on Monday, September 3:
Round 22
Dec. 10, 1992 (Champaign, Ill.; NCAA Regional Semis): #2 Stanford defeats #9 Penn State 15-13, 15-6, 15-13
Aug. 23, 1997 (Palo Alto): #2 Penn State defeats #1 Stanford 15-8, 15-13, 15-9
Sept. 6, 1997 (Storrs, Conn.): #1 Penn State defeats #3 Stanford 14-16, 15-6, 15-12, 15-7
Dec. 20, 1997 (Spokane, Wash.; NCAA Championship): #3 Stanford defeats #2 Penn State 15-10, 15-6, 2-15, 15-17, 15-9
Dec. 18, 1999 (Honolulu, NCAA Championship): #1 Penn State defeats #2 Stanford 15-2, 15-10, 15-7
Sept. 4, 2001 (State College): #9 Stanford defeats #4 Penn State 28-30, 30-26, 30-16, 30-23
Sept. 10, 2004 (Palo Alto): #7 Penn State defeats #12 Stanford 31-29, 23-30, 30-25, 26-30, 15-12
Aug. 26, 2005 (Omaha): #3 Stanford defeats #5 Penn State 30-24, 30-24, 28-30, 23-30, 15-10
Sept. 15, 2007 (New Haven, Conn.): #2 Stanford defeats #3 Penn State 30-23, 23-30, 27-30, 30-28, 15-9
Dec. 15, 2007 (Sacramento; NCAA Championship): #1 Penn State defeats #4 Stanford 30-25, 30-26, 23-30, 19-30, 15-8
Dec. 20, 2008 (Omaha; NCAA Championship): #1 Penn State defeats #2 Stanford 25-20, 26-24, 25-23
Sept. 11, 2010 (Gainesville, Fla.): #2 Stanford defeats #1 Penn State 28-26, 25-12, 25-18
Sept. 9, 2011 (Palo Alto): #3 Stanford defeats #2 Penn State 23-25, 25-19, 27-25, 25-18
Aug. 31, 2012 (State College): #4 Penn State defeats #9 Stanford 25-13, 25-27, 25-23, 23-25, 15-13
Dec. 14, 2013 (Lexington, Ky.; NCAA Regional Final): #2 Penn State defeats #3 Stanford 22-25, 25-22, 28-26, 18-25, 15-11
Sept. 5, 2014 (Palo Alto): #2 Stanford defeats #1 Penn State 18-25, 25-23, 25-22, 16-25, 15-10
Dec. 19, 2014 (Oklahoma City; NCAA Final Four): #4 Penn State defeats #1 Stanford 25-16, 23-25, 25-22, 25-21
Sept. 5, 2015 (State College): #1 Penn State defeats #2 Stanford 25-21, 25-22, 25-18
Sept. 4, 2016 (Boulder, Colo.): #9 Stanford defeats #13 Penn State 26-24, 25-18, 25-22
Sept. 1, 2017 (College Station, Texas): #5 Penn State defeats #1 Stanford 26-24, 25-17, 18-25, 25-19
Sept. 9, 2017 (Champaign, Illinois): #3 Penn State defeats #4 Stanford 24-26, 25-22, 23-25, 25-17, 15-11
217 NCAA tournament match wins between the two programs* (Stanford: 119, Penn State: 98)
166 times one of these programs has been ranked #1** (Penn State: 95, Stanford: 71)
17 times the teams have both been ranked in the Top 5 when meeting (including this year)
14 national titles between the two programs
14 times the teams have met on neutral ground
7 times a team swept (4-3 Penn State)
6 times the teams have met as No. 1 and No. 2
5 meetings in Palo Alto
3 meetings in State College
2 streaks broken in the series***
2 times in their entire series history that a team was not in the Top 10 when they played each other (2004, #12 Stanford; 2016, #13 Penn State)
Stanford’s Top Competition
St. Louis (0-1) .000
Michigan (2-3) .400
Hawaii (13-19) .406
Penn State (9-12) .429
Nebraska (6-6) .500
Gopher Broke! For the ninth time in program history, Minnesota has ascended to the top spot—one shy of the 10 weeks at #1 shared by Texas (that’s hard to believe…only 10 ever for the Longhorns?!) and Washington, who are tied for 10-place all time. From the Star Tribune: “The Gophers made it to No. 1 in the AVCA poll for the first time in program history in 2004, the season they lost to Stanford for the NCAA title. They were ranked No. 1 twice in 2016 and three consecutive weeks last September.” Their reward? A date Saturday night with Stanford, a team they are 0-8 against.
Provo Calling: BYU’s thrilling five-set win over then-#1 Stanford moved them up six spots to #3, the program’s highest ranking since the final poll of the 2014 season—when it’s magical post-season run to the NCAA title match (where it fell to Penn State) landed them in the same spot. It’s BYU’s highest regular-season ranking since 1987 (!), when it spent all year at #3 and #4. The Cougars are now 5-8 all-time against the Card, and 4-1 when playing them in Provo. From the Cougars' SID: "BYU is 3-11 all-time against teams ranked No. 1. Their last win against a top-ranked squad was against Stanford at home in 2000.” BYU has no time to rest: It next faces #10 Southern Cal and #25 (and host) Marquette. Speaking of…
#1 Minnesota @ #4 Stanford
#1 Minnesota vs. #18 Oregon
#2 Wisconsin @ #15 Paylor
#3 BYU vs. #10 Southern Cal
#3 BYU @ #25 Marquette
#5 Penn State @ #4 Stanford
#5 Penn State vs. #18 Oregon
#16 Kentucky @ #6 Texas
#7 Nebraska vs. #14 Creighton
#9 UCLA @ #22 Cal Poly (x2)
1. BYU (+6)
2. Stanford (-1)
3. Wisconsin (+3)
4. Minnesota (+1)
5. Texas (-3)
6. Illinois (+4)
7. Southern Cal (-3)
8. Florida (-5)
9. Nebraska (-1)
10. Washington (+2)
11. UCLA (+4)
12. San Diego (+9)
13. Creighton
14. Penn State
15. Baylor (-4)
16. Pittsburgh (+1)
17. Kentucky (-1)
18. Oregon
19. Michigan
20. Washington State (NR)
21. Marquette (NR)
22. Wichita State (+2)
23. Cal Poly (+2)
24. Purdue (NR)
Dropped out: Colorado State (20), Wyoming (22), Colorado (23)
Round 22
As Penn State and Stanford prepare for their 22nd, here’s a revised look at the series history between the sport’s two premier programs. Penn State holds an 12-9 edge:
Aug. 23, 1997 (Palo Alto): #2 Penn State defeats #1 Stanford 15-8, 15-13, 15-9
Sept. 6, 1997 (Storrs, Conn.): #1 Penn State defeats #3 Stanford 14-16, 15-6, 15-12, 15-7
Dec. 20, 1997 (Spokane, Wash.; NCAA Championship): #3 Stanford defeats #2 Penn State 15-10, 15-6, 2-15, 15-17, 15-9
Dec. 18, 1999 (Honolulu, NCAA Championship): #1 Penn State defeats #2 Stanford 15-2, 15-10, 15-7
Sept. 4, 2001 (State College): #9 Stanford defeats #4 Penn State 28-30, 30-26, 30-16, 30-23
Sept. 10, 2004 (Palo Alto): #7 Penn State defeats #12 Stanford 31-29, 23-30, 30-25, 26-30, 15-12
Aug. 26, 2005 (Omaha): #3 Stanford defeats #5 Penn State 30-24, 30-24, 28-30, 23-30, 15-10
Sept. 15, 2007 (New Haven, Conn.): #2 Stanford defeats #3 Penn State 30-23, 23-30, 27-30, 30-28, 15-9
Dec. 15, 2007 (Sacramento; NCAA Championship): #1 Penn State defeats #4 Stanford 30-25, 30-26, 23-30, 19-30, 15-8
Dec. 20, 2008 (Omaha; NCAA Championship): #1 Penn State defeats #2 Stanford 25-20, 26-24, 25-23
Sept. 11, 2010 (Gainesville, Fla.): #2 Stanford defeats #1 Penn State 28-26, 25-12, 25-18
Sept. 9, 2011 (Palo Alto): #3 Stanford defeats #2 Penn State 23-25, 25-19, 27-25, 25-18
Aug. 31, 2012 (State College): #4 Penn State defeats #9 Stanford 25-13, 25-27, 25-23, 23-25, 15-13
Dec. 14, 2013 (Lexington, Ky.; NCAA Regional Final): #2 Penn State defeats #3 Stanford 22-25, 25-22, 28-26, 18-25, 15-11
Sept. 5, 2014 (Palo Alto): #2 Stanford defeats #1 Penn State 18-25, 25-23, 25-22, 16-25, 15-10
Dec. 19, 2014 (Oklahoma City; NCAA Final Four): #4 Penn State defeats #1 Stanford 25-16, 23-25, 25-22, 25-21
Sept. 5, 2015 (State College): #1 Penn State defeats #2 Stanford 25-21, 25-22, 25-18
Sept. 4, 2016 (Boulder, Colo.): #9 Stanford defeats #13 Penn State 26-24, 25-18, 25-22
Sept. 1, 2017 (College Station, Texas): #5 Penn State defeats #1 Stanford 26-24, 25-17, 18-25, 25-19
Sept. 9, 2017 (Champaign, Illinois): #3 Penn State defeats #4 Stanford 24-26, 25-22, 23-25, 25-17, 15-11
Sept. 7, 2018 (Palo Alto): #4 Stanford vs. #5 Penn State
Penn State and Stanford: By the Numbers
166 times one of these programs has been ranked #1** (Penn State: 95, Stanford: 71)
17 times the teams have both been ranked in the Top 5 when meeting (including this year)
14 national titles between the two programs
14 times the teams have met on neutral ground
7 times a team swept (4-3 Penn State)
6 times the teams have met as No. 1 and No. 2
5 meetings in Palo Alto
3 meetings in State College
2 streaks broken in the series***
2 times in their entire series history that a team was not in the Top 10 when they played each other (2004, #12 Stanford; 2016, #13 Penn State)
Notes:
* Stanford’s total includes a consolation match win over Pacific in 1983 for 3rd place.
** Only Nebraska (99 times) has more.
***In the season-opening match of 1997, Penn State broke Stanford’s 50-match home win streak at Maples; in their 2010 meeting, Stanford broke Penn State’s 109-match win streak (a streak that started the match after Penn State’s regular-season loss to Stanford in 2007).
Not many programs can claim they have a winning record over the Cardinal—in fact, there are only four. Here are the only five programs that Stanford does not hold a winning record over:
Michigan (2-3) .400
Hawaii (13-19) .406
Penn State (9-12) .429
Nebraska (6-6) .500
Duck…Duck…Lose? It’s been a loooong time since Penn State beat Oregon. Way back in 1985, in fact (it was a sweep). Granted, they’ve only played three times ever, but Oregon has gotten the better of the Lions in the two more recent and memorable clashes. In the season opener in Rec Hall in 2011, the unranked Ducks stunned the #1 Lions 3-1, despite Penn State out-hitting, out-serving and out-blocking the Ducks. With the win, Oregon snapped Penn State’s 94 consecutive home-match win streak—a record that still stands as the best in the sport. The #6 Ducks played spoiler once again in the 2012 Final Four, beating #1 Penn State 3-1 (in a loss lionsfan is still bitter about…the year that got away). (Strangely, the Lions also lost to Oregon State in a shocker during the regular season that year.) The Ducks opened their season with losses to Texas and at Nebraska, and enter the weekend 4-2 with a match Friday against new #1 Minnesota.
Parity arrives? Shame on the AVCA for not telling us if this is some sort of record, especially during a non-preseason poll: A total of seven (7) teams receiving first place votes! (That has to be a record, right?!) I’m not so sure about the 4 for Penn State, 3 for Nebraska or 1 for Southern Cal, and it’s strange that Stanford picked up more first-place votes (8) than BYU (7). Minnesota had the majority at 35, with Wisconsin grabbing 6.
A Shot of Wisky: The Badgers 3-1 win over then-#2 Texas in front of 7,052 UW faithful (the fifth-highest in program history) was Wisconsin's highest win against a ranked opponent since defeating (guess who?) #2 Texas in Madison in 2016. The win moved them up eight spots to #2, its highest ranking since Week 10 of 2016 (#1). Up next is a tough test at #15 Baylor, a team hungry for a win after dropping a heartbreaking five-set decision to UCLA and a 3-1 contest to host San Diego. The Bears dropped from their program-best 12 to #15.
Orange Crush: Continuing the Big Ten’s great weekend, Illinois came out on top in a rematch of last year’s stunning 3-2 upset win over Washington in the second round of the NCAA tourney in Seattle. The Fighting Illini needed just four sets this time to top the hosting Huskies, which still managed to move up a spot from #13 to #12. Illinois stayed at #11 (huh?!) and is still looking to crack the Top 10 for the first time since November of 2015.
Feeling Golden: The Golden Eagles entered the poll for the first time this year after being the first team out the first two weeks. It’s Marquette’s first ranking since 2013, when it spent the last three weeks at #24, #22 (it’s highest ranking ever) and #23. But it may be tough to stay there, given that whole USC/BYU thing coming up.
Cougars, Cougars Everywhere! With two impressive 3-1 wins over host (and then-#17) Northern Iowa, 4-0 Washington State entered the Top 25 at #23. It is the program’s first ranking since the final poll of 2016 (#24), a year where it spend nine weeks ranked and reached as high as #10. Congrats to those “other” Cougars! (UNI, meanwhile, dropped out…although they are still clinging on in lionsfan’s Top 25)
Pitt Watch: With three more wins, Pittsburgh move dup a spot to #13—it’s new program best. The Panthers get a chance for a statement win when they host #12 Washington this weekend, looking for revenge after a sweep loss in Seattle last year.
Golden Knights: A special shout out to the Central Florida Golden Knights, who—for the second time since 2011—defeated a ranked opponent last weekend. And not just a ranked opponent, but a top 10 opponent. UCF stunned then-#7 Southern Cal, just one day after USC notched an impressive four-set win over host Florida. It was history repeating itself for the Knights, who last pulled off the feat seven years ago when it beat (well, how about that?!) #3 USC, fresh off a Final Four appearance (and on its way to another). The result put a stain on the Trojan’s weekend, preventing them from a sure climb up the rankings. They fell three spots to #10, while Florida (who also faced a stiff test from UCF) dropped four spots to #8.
Pollsters: Russ Rose moved his team up two spots to #12 this week (lionsfan was wrong last week…he had us at 14, not 16…I blame Excel formatting!), and moved BYU up eight spots to be his new #1 (just like me!). Four coaches think Penn State is #1: Todd Dagenais from UCF (and he saw some good teams this weekend!), Jason Kepner of Charleston, Bobbi Petersen of Northern Iowa and Keith Schunzel of Kennesaw State. Nebraska was voted #1 by Wayne Kreklow of Missouri, Sam Crosson of Cal Poly and Ramona Riley-Bozier of Morgan State.
The Big Matches: Week 2
#1 Minnesota vs. #18 Oregon
#2 Wisconsin @ #15 Paylor
#3 BYU vs. #10 Southern Cal
#3 BYU @ #25 Marquette
#5 Penn State @ #4 Stanford
#5 Penn State vs. #18 Oregon
#16 Kentucky @ #6 Texas
#7 Nebraska vs. #14 Creighton
#9 UCLA @ #22 Cal Poly (x2)
#10 Southern Cal @ #25 Marquette
Upset watch:
- Dayton vs. #12 Washington, #13 Pittsburgh
- Iowa State @ #13 Creighton, #7 Nebraska
- Wichita State @ #13 Creighton
- Tennessee @ #16 San Diego (x2)
- Lipscomb @ #19 Purdue
- Louisville @ #19 Purdue
- Colorado State @ #20 Michigan
- Georgia @ #24 Colorado
- North Carolina @ #24 Colorado
- Oklahoma @ #24 Colorado
Lionsfan’s Top 25
2. Stanford (-1)
3. Wisconsin (+3)
4. Minnesota (+1)
5. Texas (-3)
6. Illinois (+4)
7. Southern Cal (-3)
8. Florida (-5)
9. Nebraska (-1)
10. Washington (+2)
11. UCLA (+4)
12. San Diego (+9)
13. Creighton
14. Penn State
15. Baylor (-4)
16. Pittsburgh (+1)
17. Kentucky (-1)
18. Oregon
19. Michigan
20. Washington State (NR)
21. Marquette (NR)
22. Wichita State (+2)
23. Cal Poly (+2)
24. Purdue (NR)
25. Northern Iowa (-16)
