UMSL began the new season by going 4-0 at the Ray Thasher Classic in Nashville. (Photo: Thomas Grove)
Nora Nichols
Staff Writer
Thanks to a perfect start to the new season last weekend, the University of Missouri-St. Louis women’s volleyball team moved up in the AVCA Top 25 national poll.
The Tritons began the season ranked No. 10, but in this week’s poll, which was released on Tuesday, UMSL is now ranked No. 8 in the country.
UMSL showed itself to be as good as the coaches voting in the poll thought they were by knocking off four quality teams, including host school Trevecca Nazarene, Alabama-Huntsville, Carson-Newman, and previous No. 25 Lynn.
In its four matches, the Tritons were dominant throughout and only lost two of the 14 sets it played.
This weekend, UMSL will be in St. Augustine, Fla., to play in the Flagler Saints Classic. The Tritons will play Embry-Riddle and host school Flagler on Friday, then will face Converse and Missouri Southern on Saturday.
UMSL’s first home match this season will be on Friday, September 22, when the Tritons will host their Great Lakes Valley Conference opener at the Mark Twain Gymnasium against William Jewell.
AVCA/TARAFLEX Division II WVB Poll
| Rank | School (First-Place Votes Adjusted) | Total Points Adjusted | Record | Previous Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Texas A&M [41] | 1,152 | 4-0 | 1 |
| 2 | Concordia- St. Paul [3] | 1,125 | 4-0 | 2 |
| 3 | Wayne State (NE) | 1,011 | 4-0 | 4 |
| 4 | Tampa | 986 | 3-0 | 5 |
| 5 | St. Cloud State | 922 | 4-0 | 7 |
| 6 | MSU Denver | 907 | 3-1 | 3 |
| 7 | Minnesota Duluth | 867 | 4-0 | 8 |
| 8 | UMSL | 804 | 4-0 | 10 |
| 9 | Cal State San Bernardino [2] | 727 | 4-0 | 19 |
| 10 | Nebraska-Kearney | 673 | 4-0 | 16 |
| 11 | Southwest Minnesota State | 652 | 3-1 | 11 |
| 12 | Barry | 590 | 1-1 | 6 |
| 13 | West Florida | 519 | 2-1 | 12 |
| 14 | Colorado Mesa | 447 | 4-0 | 21 |
| 15 | Northwest Missouri State | 431 | 3-1 | 13 |
| 16 | Cal State L.A. | 405 | 1-3 | 9 |
| 17 | Washburn | 380 | 2-1 | 17 |
| 18 | Wingate | 357 | 4-0 | 20 |
| 19 | Regis | 322 | 2-2 | 18 |
| 20 | Chaminade | 309 | 8-0 | NR |
| 21 | Alaska-Anchorage | 230 | 4-4 | 14 |
| 22 | Western Washington | 175 | 0-4 | 15 |
| 23 | Central Washington | 145 | 2-2 | NR |
| 24 | Cal Poly Pomona | 132 | 3-1 | 23 |
| 25 | Harding | 122 | 4-0 | NR |
Others receiving votes and listed on two or more ballots: Central Oklahoma 92; Ferris State 72; Lewis 72; Rockhurst 61; Colorado School of Mines 56; Clarion 51; Quincy 35; Wayne State (Mich.) 34; Wheeling 34; Angelo State 31; Gannon 27; Central Missouri 26; Texas-Tyler 26; Winona State 22; Daemen 21; Lynn 18; American International 15; Florida Southern 14; Nova Southeastern 14; Charleston 12; Findlay 12; Dallas Baptist 11; Spring Hill 11; Eckerd 10; Seattle Pacific 10; Hillsdale 6
13 teams mentioned on only one ballot for a total of 78 combined points
Dropped Out: Colorado School of Mines 22; Gannon 24; Lynn 25