The Minnesota Golden Gophers volleyball team came in at No. 11 in the AVCA Preseason Poll, it was announced Wednesday. The Gophers have now been ranked in the preseason poll in 10 straight seasons and 24 of the last 26.
The last time Minnesota was unranked in a preseason poll was before the 2015 season, in which they went on to make the Final Four. In 2023, the first year under head coach Keegan Cook, Minnesota went 17-13 (12-8 Big Ten) and won an NCAA Tournament match for the ninth consecutive season before falling in the Round of 32 to Creighton. The Gophers finished the season unranked for the first time since 2014.
Last year, the Gophers went 21-11 (13-7 Big Ten) before falling to Kentucky in the NCAA’s Round of 32. Minnesota finished the year with a No. 18 overall ranking and was one of eight teams nationally to tally two top-25 ranked wins (vs. No. 1 Texas and No. 7 Wisconsin).
This season, Minnesota will play 10 matches against top-25 ranked teams. In the non-conference, they’ll take on No. 9 Texas A&M and No. 24 Dayton. In Big Ten play, they’ll play No. 8 Wisconsin and No. 15 Purdue twice. The ‘U’ is set to play No. 1 Nebraska, No. 2 Penn State, No. 18 UCLA and No. 21 USC one time each.
Seven Big Ten teams are ranked in the poll, including three of the top 10. The Gophers were picked to finish fourth in the Big Ten Preseason poll, behind Nebraska, Penn State and Wisconsin. Penn State took home the national title last year while Nebraska made the Final Four and Wisconsin the Elite Eight.
Minnesota competes against selected Alumni in an exhibition match on Saturday, Aug. 16 at 3 p.m. Admission is free and no stream will be available. The regular season begins on Monday, Aug. 25 in Sioux Falls, S.D., at the Sanford Pentagon vs. No. 9 Texas A&M.
(info courtesy of Gopher Sports)
