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The unanimous No. 1 team in the preseason national coaches poll is also the overwhelming preseason favorite to win the MPSF.
BYU earned all but one first-place vote to finish atop the MPSF Preseason Coaches Poll that was released on Friday.
The Cougars were undefeated in the MPSF and had won 17 of their first 18 matches at the time the 2020 season was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. Three First-Team All-Ameicans return to the BYU starting lineup for the upcoming season, including the 2020 National Player of the Year opposite Gabi Garcia Fernandez.
Fernandez led the nation with a 0.92 aces per game average and was one of two BYU players to be in the nation’s top 25 averaging more than 3.50 kills per game. In addition, Fernandez helped the Cougars finish with a nation-best .371 attack percentage last season.
Pepperdine was the only other school to receive a first-place vote in the preseason poll.
The Waves received 27 points — nine fewer points than the Cougars. It also edged out UCLA by two points and Grand Canyon by three points to finish the poll in second place.
The MPSF regular season will begin later this month and conclude with the seven-team MPSF Tournament in April. The winner of the conference tournament will receive the MPSF’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
2021 MPSF Preseason Poll
1. BYU — 36 (6) points
2. Pepperdine — 27 (1) points
3. UCLA — 25 points
4. Grand Canyon — 24 points
5. Concordia-Irvine — 17 points
6. Stanford — 10 points
7. USC — 8 points