BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University volleyball team has moved into the national top 5 in the current edition of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Coaches Poll, announced Monday from the organization headquarters in Lexington, Ky.
The current 16-match winning streak has propelled the Vikings into the national top 10, where they have been No. 8 in each of the last four polls. WWU moved up three spots to No. 5 when the rankings were announced Monday afternoon. WWU has been listed in each of the last 78 national polls dating back to the start of the 2012 season, but this marks the first regular-season top 5 ranking since midway through the 2008 season. WWU has appeared in the NCAA Championships in each of the last five seasons, including the Final Four in 2015.
The Vikings recorded a pair of road wins last week at Seattle Pacific and Saint Martin’s to improve to 23-3 overall and 17-1 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play. The current 16-match winning streak is tied for the 5th-longest winning streak in program history and currently the 6th-longest active winning streak in NCAA Division II. All three losses this season have been against teams that have appeared in the top 10 this season, with defeats against current No. 1 Concordia-St. Paul, No. 2 California Baptist and No. 13 Northwest Nazarene.
The 2017 regular season winds down this week with the two biggest matches of the year being played at home on WECU Court at Carver Gym. The first-place Vikings host second-place Northwest Nazarene on Thursday at 7 pm in a match that will have a big impact on deciding the conference champion, with a WWU victory securing the GNAC title. WWU then hosts in-state rival and third-place Central Washington for Senior Night on Saturday at 7 pm in Carver Gym.
