The AVCA released its preseason rankings ahead of the 2026 season, and Penn State women's volleyball made a shocking crack into the Top 10. The Nittany Lions finished the 2025 season unranked and lost to Texas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Penn State just beat out SMU for the No. 10 spot with 947 points to the Mustangs' 934. Three other Big Ten teams — Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Purdue — also ranked in the Top 10, and eight program total were voted into the Top 25.
In the Big Ten Coaches Poll, the Nittany Lions were voted as the No. 3 team in the preseason with the Boilermakers sitting behind at No. 4.
Now, after finishing 12-8 in the Big Ten and 19-13 overall, landing at No. 10 in the AVCA Poll is impressive. Despite being unranked by the end of the season, Penn State should still be a Top 25 team, but scraping by into the Top 10 is another story.
Penn State volleyball ranks No. 10 on AVCA preseason poll
The Nittany Lions return right side hitter Kennedy Martin, outside hitter Emmi Sellman, right side/outside hitter Caroline Jurevicius, middle blocker Gabrielle Nichols, and outside hitter Alexis Ewing up at the net.
Martin, Sellman, and Jurevicius are powerful attackers. The former Florida Gator, in particular, is the biggest threat whether she's up at the net or hitting backrow. As for Sellman and Jurevicius, they were sparkplugs for Penn State in 2025 to bring some juice and shift momentum, though not the most consistent. If those two can figure out how to get around blocks, that will be ideal for transfer setter Alexis Stucky. Vice versa, having Stucky on the second touch will make the hitters' lives much easier in terms of accuracy.
On defense, the Nittany Lions have Ava Falduto wearing the libero jersey, which was an expected move after Gillian Grimes graduated. They also return Lexi Gin and Jocelyn Nathan in the backrow.
Needless to say, it's an experienced roster with a ton of talent, but there's still uncertainty when it comes to how well they'll perform in 2026.
The Big Ten is loaded. Again, eight teams are featured in the preseason poll. Nine from the conference played in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Michigan and UCLA are the only schools that didn't make the initial Top 25 cut from that group. Oregon did not play in the tournament, but made it into the preseason rankings.
Penn State doesn't have an easy schedule either. Aside from its conference opponents, it also faces Stanford, Tennessee, and Kentucky. These three are all ranked in the poll at No. 5, No. 22, and No. 3, respectively.
The Nittany Lions are a more proven team than they were heading into the 2025 season, but they have their work cut out for them in 2026. Expect to see them shift a bit in the Top 25, and likely drop down once they get into Big Ten play.
Big Ten AVCA Top 25 rankings:
- No. 1 - Nebraska
- No. 6 - Wisconsin
- No. 9 - Purdue
- No. 10 - Penn State
- No. 14 - Minnesota
- No. 16 - Indiana
- No. 20 - USC
- No. 25 - Oregon
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