NCAA women’s volleyball season: “Exciting, unpredictable, and historic!”

With all eyes on NCAA college volleyball this season, it’s no surprise that fans and teams would be closely watching as the NCAA Division I women’s volleyball committee reveals its top 10 during the regular season.  The committee placed Wisconsin, Nebraska and Florida at the top of its list on September 24, which came during […]

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With all eyes on NCAA college volleyball this season, it’s no surprise that fans and teams would be closely watching as the NCAA Division I women’s volleyball committee reveals its top 10 during the regular season. 

The committee placed Wisconsin, Nebraska and Florida at the top of its list on September 24, which came during the Tennessee-Kentucky match. On October 29, during the Washington and Oregon match, the committee awarded Nebraska, Stanford and Wisconsin with the top three spots.

While wins and losses certainly play a large part in where a team is ranked, there a number of other important criteria that is used to rank, and later on, select and seed teams for the volleyball championship. They include:

• Strength of schedule;
• Rating Percentage Index (RPI);
• Head-to-head competition;
• Results versus common opponents; 
• KPI;
• Significant wins/losses and location of those contests.

Additionally, the Division I Women’s Volleyball Committee takes input given by the regional advisory committees under their consideration. 

Holly Strauss-O’Brien, the deputy director of athletics/senior woman administrator at Loyola University Chicago and the chair of the committee, shared more about the rankings process and how the committee makes the tough decisions it does.

In one word/sentence, how would you describe the 2023 volleyball season?

Exciting, unpredictable, and historic!

About how many games do you watch a week?

There’s a lot of volleyball being watched and discussed by the committee. I would say (using multiple devices to watch a couple games at a time) I typically watch 15-20 matches a week. To me, watching matches is such an important piece to our role and responsibility as committee members. There are so many variables that go into a win: home/away/neutral site, overall health of a team, and the fact that teams are human. They have good days, bad days, and okay days. Not to mention, winning is hard! Watching the competition allows you to see what separates good teams from great teams. Meaning, on the bad days, or a road game with a packed arena, is a team able to find a way to win? It’s really fun to watch the journey all of the teams take throughout the course of the season. 

How often does the committee meet to discuss everything going on the Division I volleyball world?

We have a formal set meeting every other week to go over feedback and rankings from our Regional Advisory Committee meetings; however, as a committee, we are communicating daily. Whether it’s through our group chat talking about whatever match is being played, updating scores of matches that are going on, to the many emails of watch lists as it pertains to our assigned regions. During ranking reveal weekends, we are hopping on Zoom calls for about two hours each day, Friday through Sunday, to analyze, discuss and debate our top 10 ranking as a committee. 

How hard it is it narrow down to a Top-20 and then a Top-10?

There are certainly a lot of high performing teams this season, which is great for the game of volleyball. It’s always difficult to compare and contrast teams, as well as rank what team is better than another. Having the different data and criteria to utilize is very helpful. Of course watching as much volleyball as possible is a vital part of the decision making process. The committee can dissect two teams and have robust conversations on what team should be ranked higher than the other. However, at the end of the day, each committee member has their own individual vote. I can sincerely say we all take our responsibility seriously and are dedicated to keeping the integrity of the bracket. 

What teams have impressed the committee the most so far?

That’s a loaded question! There are so many teams that are playing some great volleyball right now. It’s easy to naturally give props to the teams at the top right now: Nebraska, Stanford and Wisconsin. They are playing at an elite level and are setting the standard. However, there are teams that are undefeated, which is impressive, as winning is hard, no matter what! The competition and level of play has been fun to watch and the most exciting part is that there’s no doubt the best volleyball is still yet to come!  

Why did Nebraska, Stanford and Wisconsin make it to the top of the second Top-10 reveal?

Nebraska at No. 1 speaks for itself: they are undefeated and have beaten both Wisconsin and Stanford. These three teams, to date, separated themselves from the rest with their win/loss records, significant wins, stellar play and really, just taking care of business. There’s no doubt these three teams will be tested in the remaining weeks of regular season play. Stanford has a tough remaining conference schedule left, similar to Nebraska and Wisconsin battling in the Big 10; not to mention, the grand finale of conference play being the Nebraska vs Wisconsin rematch.  

Do these Top-10 reveals play any part when it comes to selections for the tournament? 

While these top-10 reveals may be referenced when we are in the selection room, they do not play a part in the seeding – these top 10 reveals are great practice for the committee upon entering selections weekend and it’s also a great way for everyone to see what the committee is thinking at that particular time of the regular season. Things change week to week, and come selections weekend, we are seeding and constructing the bracket based on entire body of work. 

What are some common misconceptions that the public doesn’t understand about rankings and selections?

I think a common misconception would be that the committee heavily relies on RPI for determining rankings. While RPI is a criteria and something we look at, there are several other criterias and factors that go into decision making:  Win/loss record, RPI, KPI, strength of schedule, head-to-head, top 10 results, top 25 results, top 50 results, last 10 games played, best win, worst loss etc. Comparisons are not taken lightly…we put in the work that is necessary. 

What should people expect from this year’s tournament?

This year’s NCAA tournament is going to be exciting and monumental! We are so proud of the student-athletes and coaches for their tireless efforts to continue to push this game to new heights. The Tampa Bay Sports Commission, the University of South Florida, the AVCA, and ESPN have been outstanding partners with us and there is some amazing momentum leading into this tournament! Volleyball fans will not be disappointed.  

The 2023 DI women’s volleyball championship will be held on Dec. 14-17 in Amalie Arena, located in Tampa, Fla. The first semifinal match on Thursday, Dec. 14 is slotted for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, and the second semifinal will begin 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first match (also on ESPN). The national championship will then take place on Sunday, Dec. 17 at 3 p.m. ET and will air on ABC.

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