Sophomore middle blocker Bianca Garibaldi (20) celebrates a point during the women’s volleyball game against Penn State on Sunday, Apr. 14, 2024 at the Fitzgerald Field House.
Pitt volleyball made history Monday afternoon as it was ranked No. 1 in the AVCA Coaches poll for the first time in program history. This is the first time a Pitt sports team was ranked No. 1 since the men’s soccer team was ranked first in 2020.
The Panthers have dominated in their first three games of the year, sweeping every single opponent, 3-0, and winning six of the nine sets Pitt played in by ten or more points.
In the AVCA’s poll, the Panthers earned 29 first-place votes, then ACC foe Stanford was close behind earning 23 first-place votes of their own and getting the No. 2 ranking. The Panthers play the Cardinal on Oct. 20th in the Fitzgerald Field House and the game will air nationally on ESPN.
Head coach Dan Fisher’s squad started the 2024 season ranked No. 4 and crept up to No. 3 last week after Wisconsin suffered two early season losses.
Pitt then surpassed Texas and Nebraska in the poll this week and made program history because the two programs suffered unexpected early-season losses. Texas lost to No. 19 Minnesota and No. 20 Miami and Nebraska suffered a loss to unranked SMU.
No. 20 Miami and SMU come to the Fitzgerald Field House during ACC play later in the season. Miami comes to Pittsburgh on Nov. 17th and SMU on Oct 9th. These two games look a bit tougher for the Panthers, but overall, have the potential to help the Panthers in their chances of earning a No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament.
The Hurricanes and Cardinal aren’t the only teams on Pitt’s schedule that have received a ranking in this week’s poll, as the Panthers will face seven other top-25 teams with three of them in the top 10.
Most notably, the Panthers take on No. 3 ranked Penn State — who received six first-place votes — on Sept. 18th in the Petersen Events Center where Pitt volleyball is hoping to break the attendance record the program set last year.
The Panthers play their first game as the No. 1 ranked team this Wednesday against No. 23 USC in Los Angeles, California. The game will air on Big Ten Network starting at 9 p.m.
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