Sept. 10, 2001
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - With three wins this weekend, including one over 13th-ranked UC Santa Barbara, the Santa Clara volleyball team moved up four spots in this week's edition of the USA Today and American Volleyball Coaches Association Poll and are currently ranked 20th, the organization released today.
The Broncos, now 7-1 on the season, have now appeared in 17 straight polls, a program record. The squad's preseason listing two weeks ago marked another milestone, the first-ever for the program. Santa Clara's highest ranking came last November at No. 14. The only other season in which the Broncos were ranked nationally occurred in 1993 for seven consecutive weeks.
The main reason behind SCU's climb in the rankings was a three-game sweep of UC Santa Barbara on Saturday night. The Gauchos entered the match ranked 13th but tumbled this week to 18th after the 31-29, 30-24, 30-20 loss to the Broncos.
The match marked the first victory for Santa Clara over the Gauchos since the 1984 season, and second overall in 17 tries.
The Broncos return to action Tuesday at the Leavey Center, hosting Big West Champion and 2000 NCAA Tournament participant Sacramento State at 7 p.m.
USA TODAY/AVCA Division I Coaches Top 25
Poll #2, September 10, 2001
Rank School (First-Place Votes) 2001 Record
1 Nebraska (38) 6-1
2 Long Beach State (26) 5-0
3 Arizona (1) 5-0
4 Stanford 6-0
5 USC 4-1
6 Penn State 6-1
7 Pacific 8-1
8 UCLA 5-1
9 Wisconsin 6-2
10 Florida 4-1
11 Colorado State 6-0
12 Hawaii 4-4
13-tie Pepperdine 4-2
13-tie BYU 5-1
15 Ohio State 7-0
16 Texas A&M 6-1
17 Minnesota 6-2
18 UC Santa Barbara 2-3
19 South Carolina 6-0
20 Santa Clara 7-1
21 Utah 4-2
22 Kansas State 4-2
23 Notre Dame 3-3
24 Northern Iowa 6-0
25 Texas 5-1
Others receiving points: Louisville (111), Colorado (83), Michigan State (56), Baylor (18), Missouri (13), Washington State (12).