The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Volleyball ends year at No. 7 in the CSTV/AVCA Poll
12.20.2006 | Volleyball
AUSTIN, Texas -- After earning its first trip to the NCAA Regional Finals since 1998, the Texas Volleyball team concluded its 2006 campaign ranked No. 7 in the final CSTV/AVCA Coaches Poll, released Wednesday.
The seventh-ranked Longhorns earned their best final ranking since the 1998 season and the highest final ranking during head coach Jerritt Elliott's six-year tenure. The Horns finished fifth in the final poll in 1998 and their previous-best finish under Elliott was a No. 9 ranking in 2004. Texas spent the final seven weeks of the season ranked eighth and was ranked in the Top 10 in 14-of-15 polls.
Texas' victories over Prairie View A&M and Stephen F. Austin in the NCAA First and Second Rounds propelled the Horns into the NCAA Regional Semifinals where they swept No. 11 Wisconsin. The Longhorns concluded their season with a 3-1 loss to second-ranked and eventual national runner-up Stanford.
Five Big 12 Conference teams concluded the season ranked in the Top 25, including 2006 National Champion Nebraska. The Huskers were followed in the poll by No. 2 Stanford, No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 Washington, No. 5 Penn State and No. 6 Minnesota. Oklahoma, Missouri and Colorado joined Nebraska and Texas as the other Big 12 schools in the poll at the No. 12, No. 21 and No. 24 spots, respectively.
Nine of Texas' opponents this season ended the season ranked in the Top 25 with No. 11 Wisconsin and No. 17 Cal Poly joining Nebraska, Stanford, Washington, Penn State, Oklahoma, Missouri and Colorado in the poll.
The Longhorns finished the season ranked third in the Big 12 after posting a 24-7, 16-4 Big 12 mark. Texas loses just three seniors from its regional finalist squad and will return 10 letterwinners and welcome the No. 2 and No. 3 recruits in the country to the Forty Acres in 2007.