The Place for College Men's Volleyball
What a difference a year makes deciding who is No. 1 in the rankings.
For most of last season there was a revolving door at the No. 1 spot with three teams having the top ranking by late February. However, this season USC has maintained the No. 1 spot since the preseason and is receiving all but one first-place vote in the coaches and media poll for the second consecutive week.
Continue reading “My men’s volleyball media poll ballot”
It’s your top five men’s volleyball story list, but with a twist.
Every Sunday during the men’s volleyball season I will post the top five best men’s volleyball stories of the week from around the nation. The list, though, is based more on how well the reporter wrote and covered the story rather than just what happened on the court.
Continue reading “The top 5 men’s volleyball stories of the week”
There is only one match between two top 10 ranked teams tonight, but as today has shown rankings are not needed for intrigue.
No. 9 Penn State this afternoon survived in five games against Lees-McRae, which was attempting to be the first team from the Conference Carolinas to defeat a top 10 ranked team. In addition, one week ago all five of the top ranked lost, with four of them losing to teams outside of the top 10.
Check out the top five men’s volleyball matches to follow tonight.
Continue reading “Top 5 men’s volleyball matches to follow tonight”
No. 5 Ohio State (10-2, 4-0 MIVA) remained undefeated in conference play as it swept Ball State (6-5, 1-2 MIVA) 25-16, 25-21, 28-26 on Friday at Worthen Arena.
With this victory the Buckeyes extended their nation-best winning streak to 10 matches and will likely remain in the top five of next week’s national rankings. This was also the ninth consecutive match that Ball State has lost to Ohio State — the worst losing streak against the Buckeyes in Cardinals’ 47-year program history.
Check out this postmatch press conference with Ball State coach Joel Walton as he discusses his team’s struggles in the match, some positives they can take from the loss and if this is the best Ohio State he has ever seen.
Continue reading “No. 5 Ohio State vs. Ball State: postmatch press conferecne”
After two weeks of teams primarily playing non-conference matches, the conference season has returned in full force this weekend.
Already two of the top five teams have lost this week and three more of the top-five teams have conference matches tonight. In addition, tonight features No. 5 Ohio State and Ball State renewing the oldest Midwest men’s volleyball rivalry and two conference leaders playing each other in one of the few non-conference matches.
Check out the top five men’s volleyball matches to follow tonight.
Continue reading “Top 5 men’s volleyball matches to follow tonight”
There is a legitimate national championship contender at Ohio State, besides the teams on the football field and basketball court.
After losing its first two matches of the season, the No. 5 Ohio State men’s volleyball team (9-2, 3-0 MIVA) has won its last nine matches, including victories against No. 8 UC Irvine, No. 9 Penn State and Cal State Northridge in the last two weeks. In addition, the Buckeyes are in first place in the MIVA and received a first-place vote in both the coaches and media polls this week.
Off the Block conducted an interview earlier this week with Ohio State coach Pete Hanson to discuss his team’s recent success and the possibility of this being a national championship team.
Continue reading “Q&A with Ohio State coach Pete Hanson”
Everyone in the top five of the national rankings picked a good week to lose.
For the first time in NCAA men’s volleyball history, all five of the top ranked teams Friday lost on a single night. It was one of the biggest oddities in my time covering men’s volleyball and created an interesting situation for this week’s poll.
Continue reading “My men’s volleyball media poll ballot”
It’s your top five men’s volleyball story list, but with a twist.
Every Sunday during the men’s volleyball season I will post the top five best men’s volleyball stories of the week from around the nation. The list, though, is based more on how well the reporter wrote and covered the story rather than just what happened on the court.
Continue reading “The top 5 men’s volleyball stories of the week”
A day after one of the most historical nights of upsets in NCAA men’s volleyball history that featured all five top ranked teams losing, Saturday’s lineup is almost just as intriguing.
Everything from conference rivalries to teams in dire need to pick up a victory highlights tonight’s schedule.
Check out the top five matches to follow tonight as this chaotic weekend in men’s volleyball begins to wind down.
Continue reading “Top 5 matches to follow tonight”
The oddity of Friday night may be a first in the 41-year history of NCAA men’s volleyball.
All of the top five ranked teams in the ASICS/Volleyball Magazine Men’s Division I-II Media Poll — No. 1 USC, No. 2 Long Beach State, No. 3 BYU, No. 4 Stanford and No. 5 UCLA — lost Friday.
With a majority of the top 10 nationally ranked teams being in the MPSF, it is not unusual for one or two of the top five teams to lose a match during a weekend. However, I can never recall or find another incense when all five of the top ranked teams lost in a single day.
Continue reading “Scraping the wreckage of a historical upset Friday”