Volleyball Tied for 27th in AVCA Preseason Poll

CLEMSON, S.C. – The Clemson volleyball team is tied for 27th nationally according to the AVCA Division I Coaches Poll released this week. Twelve letterwinners and all six starters return off last year’s team that posted a 22-11 record, making Clemson the 1999 preseason favorite in the ACC.

The Tigers received 89 votes in the national poll, the highest total among all teams in the league. North Carolina ranks 33rd with 30 votes, while Georgia Tech is 39th with 15 votes. Virginia placed 40th in the preseason poll, pulling in 12 votes, and Florida State is picked 44th in the preseason with seven votes.

Clemson concluded last season with a 22-11 record and earned its fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament in six years. The Tigers will open the season September 3-4 at the Michigan State Volleyball Classic, where the team will face 16th-ranked Texas A&M and 22nd-ranked Michigan State.

“We’re very excited about being ranked 27th in the preseason poll,” said Jolene Jordan Hoover, who is beginning her seventh season as the head coach of the Tiger volleyball program. “Playing these two ranked teams early in the season will give us the opportunity to move up in the poll.”

Other ranked teams on the Tigers’ schedule include 20th-ranked Arkansas, 29th-ranked Notre Dame, plus Illinois State and South Carolina, who are tied for 49th nationally.

The complete AVCA Division I Coaches Poll is as follows:

Rank   School (1st-Place Votes)    Points  98 Rec.  98 Rank 1     Penn State (30)              1,420   35-1       2 2     Stanford (20)                1,387   27-4       9 3     Nebraska (1)                 1,284   32-2       3 4     Hawai'i (3)                  1,258   32-3       5 5     Long Beach State (5)         1,226   36-0       1 6     Pacific                      1,196   26-6      10 7     BYU                          1,186   31-4       6 8     Florida                      1,169   35-3       4 9     Wisconsin                      963   30-5       710     UCLA (1)                       815   16-12     1611     UC Santa Barbara               781   28-6      1212     Pepperdine                     722   19-11     1513     Texas                          667   27-5       814     Illinois                       644   22-11     1415     Arizona                        621   22-7      2016     Texas A&M                      562   21-9      1817     Ohio State                     517   17-14     2418     University of San Diego        500   24-6      1919     Colorado                       336   22-7      1720     Arkansas                       322   29-6      1321     USC                            314   24-6      1122     Michigan State                 294   23-7      2223     Kansas State                   202   19-12     2324     Colorado State                 173   24-8      NR25     Loyola Marymount               144   18-8      NR

Others receiving votes: Louisville (95), Texas Tech (89), Clemson (89), Notre Dame (82), Minnesota (64), Indiana (58), Santa Clara (36), North Carolina (30), Utah (24), Sacramento State (23), Northern Iowa (22), Miami, Ohio (17), Baylor (16), Georgia Tech (15), Virginia (12), Houston (12), Washington State (10), Washington (9), Florida State (7), Arizona State (7), South Florida (5), Northern Illinois (5), San Jose State (4), South Carolina (3), Eastern Washington (3), Illinois State (3), Oral Roberts (3), Georgetown (2), Ball State (2), UNLV (1), Temple (1), Nevada (1), Ohio (1).