LEXINGTON, Ky. – The LSU volleyball team was listed among the programs receiving votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 Preseason Poll announced Monday.
The Tigers collected 24 votes and are scheduled to play nine matches against Top 25 competition which include a quartet of 2011 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 squads and a pair of 2011 NCAA Tournament Elite 8 qualifiers.
The SEC features No. 13 Kentucky, No. 15 Tennessee and No. 18 Florida among the Top 25. The Tigers are joined by league newcomers Texas A&M and Missouri in the receiving votes category.
Non-conference ranked opponents on LSU’s 2012 docket include No. 2 Texas, No. 9 Purdue, No. 14 Washington and No. 19 San Diego with North Carolina receiving votes.
LSU will hold its annual Purple & Gold Scrimmage on Saturday, August 18 at 4:30 p.m. inside the Maravich Center. Admission to the scrimmage and all 2012 home matches at the Maravich Center are free compliments of the Advocate’s “Geaux Free” program.
Leading into the scrimmage, the Tigers will instruct basic volleyball skills starting at 2 p.m. during a free kid’s clinic. The clinic is open to all children eighth grade and under. To reserve your spot, contact Lauren at promotions@lsu.edu by Wednesday, August 15 and include how many children will be attending the event.
For all of the latest news and information on Tiger volleyball, visit www.lsusports.net/volleyball. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/lsuvolleyball along with @lsuvolleyball and @lsucoachfran on Twitter.
Below is the complete AVCA Top 25 preseason poll.
Rank, Team (First Place Votes), Total Points, 2011 Record, 2011 Final Poll
1, UCLA (54), 1485, 30-6, 1
2, Texas (1), 1341, 25-5, 4
3, Penn State, 1302, 25-8, 9
4, Nebraska (1), 1281, 25-5, 12
5, Southern Cal (1), 1233, 29-5, 3
6, Stanford (3), 1197, 22-8, 14
7, Illinois, 1163, 30-5, 2
8, Hawai’i, 989, 31-2, 5
9, Purdue, 935, 29-5, 10
10, Iowa State, 886, 25-6, 8
11, Pepperdine, 801, 25-7, 6
12, Florida State, 770, 28-7, 7
13, Kentucky, 724, 28-6, 13
14, Washington, 677, 24-8, 17
15, Tennessee, 652, 28-4, 19
16, Minnesota, 616, 20-12, 15
17, California, 583, 26-7, 16
18, Florida, 543, 27-6, 11
19, San Diego, 476, 28-5, T-20
20, Oregon, 366, 21-1-, 25
21, Northern Iowa, 286, 33-2, 18
22, Kansas State, 246, 22-11, 22
23, Michigan, 210, 22-13, T-20
24, Ohio State, 163, 20-15, 23
25, Colorado State, 136, 24-6, 25
Receiving Votes: Long Beach State 66, North Carolina 57, Dayton 42, Saint Mary’s 33, Michigan State 30, Louisville 28, Tulsa 25, LSU 24, Western Kentucky 24, Arizona 17, Texas A&M 15, Miami 13, BYU 12, Missouri 9, Cincinnati 6, Oklahoma 4 and Wichita State 3.