Ducks No. 14 in AVCA Preseason Poll

EUGENE, Ore. – On the heels of a Sweet Sixteen appearance during its spring campaign, the Oregon volleyball team checks in at No. 14 in Monday's release of the AVCA Top 25 preseason poll. The Ducks are the second-highest ranked Pac-12 team in the poll.
 
Oregon finished the spring season with a 15-5 record and earned the No. 10 national seed in the NCAA Tournament, the third top-10 national seed in program history. With its 14-4 record during the league-only regular season, UO placed second in the Pac-12 to match the program's highest-ever conference finish.
 
Among Pac-12 teams, Oregon ranks only behind Washington (No. 4) and is one of six conference teams in the preseason top 25: Washington, Oregon, UCLA (17), Washington State (18), Utah (19) and Stanford (21). USC and Arizona are also receiving votes.
 
The Ducks' non-conference slate also features a trio of ranked opponents beginning with a Sept. 2 road test at No. 23 Rice. The following weekend, Oregon hosts the Pac-12/Big Ten Challenge (Sept. 10-11) at Matthew Knight Arena which will bring No. 7 Minnesota, No. 12 Penn State and Stanford to Eugene.
 
The Pac-12 and Big Ten each have six teams in the AVCA preseason top 25, tied for the most by any conference. Defending national champion Kentucky comes in at No. 3 to start the 2021 season.
 
Up next, the team will host a second open scrimmage (Aug. 21) that will feature a handful of UO alumni.
 
The 2021 regular season begins Aug. 27-28 with the Oregon Invitational. The Ducks' season opener will be Friday, Aug. 27 at 1 p.m. (PT) against Portland State. Oregon will also host Santa Clara and San Jose State that same weekend.
 
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