UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The four-time defending national champion Penn State women’s volleyball team heads into the 2011 season as the preseason favorite in the AVCA Division I Coaches Top 25 Poll, the organization announced Tuesday (Aug. 16). The eight-time defending Big Ten Champions earned 1,486 total points and 54 of 60 first place votes.
USC is ranked second heading into 2011 having garnered 1,424 points and five first place votes. Following the Trojans are California (No. 3), which Penn State defeated in the 2010 National Championship match, Texas (No. 4) and Nebraska (No. 5).
Penn State will face 13 teams listed in the 2011 AVCA poll, including nine ranked in the top 25 in the nation. The Nittany Lions take on USC (No. 2) in their first weekend of preseason play in the AVCA Showcase. The squad will then take on Stanford (No. 6) and either Florida (No. 9) or Texas (No. 4) the weekend of Sept. 9-10 at the Nike Big Four Volleyball Classic in Palo Alto, Calif. During Big Ten play, Penn State will challenge Nebraska (No. 5), Illinois (No. 8), Minnesota (No. 12), Purdue (No. 13), Ohio State (No. 21) and Michigan (T-No. 24). In addition, Penn State will take the court against Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan State and Northwestern who all received votes in the poll.
Head coach Russ Rose, in his 33rd season at the helm of the Penn State program, welcomes the return of four starters from the 2010 National Championship team, including AVCA Division I National Freshman of the Year and Second Team All-American Deja McClendon (Louisville, Ky.) and NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team member Kristin Carpenter (Mechanicsville, Va.). The 2010 squad finished with a 32-5 record and secured its 14th overall and eighth straight Big Ten Championship. The Nittany Lions also welcome back seniors Katie Kabbes (Raleigh, N.C.) and Megan Shifflett (Falls Church, Va.), junior Marika Racibarskas (Chatham, N.J.), redshirt sophomore Darcy Dorton (Muncie, Ind.) sophomores Ariel Scott (Ridgewood, N.J.), Maddie Martin (Tampa, Fla.), Katie Slay (Raleigh, N.C.) and Ali Longo (Littleton, Colo.), and redshirt freshmen Erica Denney (Aurora, Colo.) and Maggie Harding (State College, Pa.).
The Nittany Lions boast the addition of five freshmen to this year’s squad, including 5-6 libero Dominique Gonzalez (San Antonio, Texas), 6-4 outside hitter Aiyana Whitney (Norwood, N.J.), 6-2 outside hitter Nia Grant (Warren, Ohio), 5-6 libero Lacey Fuller (San Diego, Calif.) and 5-11 setter/outside hitter Micha Hancock (Edmond, Okla.).
Penn State opens the 2011 season at home in the AVCA Showcase on Aug. 26-27 facing Oregon and USC. The Lions travel to Pittsburgh on Sept. 2-3 to play Miami (Ohio), Pittsburgh and New Hampshire. From there, Penn State travels to Stanford on Sept. 9-10 for the Nike Big Four Volleyball Classic before closing out the preseason at home on Sept. 16-17. The Lions host Long Island, Florida Gulf Coast and Rutgers at Rec Hall in the Penn State Classic.
The Nittany Lions open the Big Ten slate on Wednesday, Sept. 21 at Nebraska. The Big Ten home opener is set for Sept. 30 against Wisconsin.