It was a great week for the Pittsburgh Panthers women’s volleyball squad. The team defeated rivals Louisville on October 25th in a quite closely contested game of five sets. While the Cardinals threatened the Panthers’ resolve several times, the team eventually held on winning the match 25-21, 26-28, 25-17, 22-25, and 15-12. Sophomore Olivia Babcock led the charge for the team with seven kills and.455 hitting percentage. Thus, it was a great game for the Pitts.

The week didn’t end there for the Pitts, however, as they faced Notre Dame on October 27th. This time, the volleyball team paved their way to victory in a relatively easier way as they took down their opponents in four sets with a scoreline of 25-14, 25-20, 22-25, 22-19. It was their ninth victory of the season at the ACC, taking their tournament record to 9-1 to cap off the week. This meant that Pittsburgh fans had nothing much to complain about their performance.

Actually, they will be happier knowing that the team retained its No. 1 ranking in the released AVCA ranking list of October 28th. This is the eighth straight week Pittsburgh ranked atop the table; they earned 51 votes while their nearest rival Nebraska got only 9 votes. The third-ranked team, Penn State, obtained only one vote.

On the other hand, the Texas Longhorns slipped down to 9th position, two slots behind their finishing last week. It was because of the fact that they were beaten by archrivals Texas A&M in a tightly contested five-set match. In the meantime, Wisconsin and Kansas claimed the seventh and eighth spots. There were several fans who aired their protest over the list since they felt many inaccuracies crept into the list.

The volleyball list discontented most fans, as they said that there were a lot of mistakes. They said the Texas Longhorns did not deserve to be on that list because they lost to A&M, and the game was at their own stadium. Many actually felt that A&M merited a place in the top 10 for what they did, which was somehow not awarded to them; it raised quite a great debate among the fans.

Other than that, one user said that the list barely moved at all this year, where most teams just stayed where they were with no changes. Of course, the happiest fans were of Pittsburgh because their team took the first position again this year. However, it was not the same thing for A&M fans because they were on the opposite end.

Fans are in an uproar over Texas Longhorns holding down a spot on the AVCA Volleyball Rankings

Below NCAA Women’s Volleyball’s post on X, one user said, “Did I miss the memo on why we’re not ranking A&M?? They just beat Texas on the road. “ And honestly, who can blame them? The game between Texas A&M and the Texas Longhorns was a nail-biter that went all the way to five sets, with A&M pulling off a stunning 25-27, 25-14, 23-25, 25-21, and 18-16 victory. They came back from one set down during the fourth, proving they can hold their own even in enemy territory!

Given that kind of grit, it’s no wonder fans are questioning why A&M isn’t getting the recognition it deserves. Many believe that the Longhorns, after suffering a loss at home to their biggest rivals, shouldn’t still be hanging onto a top ranking. One user summed it up perfectly: “Texas remaining in the Top 10 is comical.”

Meanwhile, Texas Longhorns guard Jordan Lee (7) has been seen putting in the work during practice as Head Coach Vic Schaefer keeps a watchful eye, gearing up for their upcoming exhibition match against UT-Tyler on Oct. 31. But will that be enough to keep them relevant in the rankings after such a setback?

Another user pointed out an interesting trend: “I’m sure someone has actual data on this, but it feels like this year has had the least amount of movement in poll from week to week that I can remember.” It’s true! Since week five, the top three teams—Pittsburgh, Nebraska, and Penn State—have remained unchanged, while Louisville and Stanford have also stuck around the top five since week four. Even teams like Creighton and Texas have kept their spots in the top 10, despite some ups and downs.

Most of these teams have shown great performances, especially Pittsburgh, who has maintained the top spot for eight weeks with a formidable 9-1 record. They’ve defeated three of the other top-five teams: Penn State, Louisville, and Stanford. As one fan said, “Pitt has beat 3 out of the 4 other teams in the top 5. Seems pretty good.” So, with all this debate and drama, what do you think? Is the AVCA volleyball list hitting the mark this week, or is it time for a shake-up?