While most of the teams at the top continued to win, the biggest storyline in week 11 revolved around Cal State Northridge breaking out and downing then-third ranked Hawaii in back-to-back sweeps. The win puts a big dent in Hawaii’s at-large chances while also giving CSUN new life toward the end of the season as they hop into the top 10 this week.
Besides that, not much changed with most differences being a spot slide or rise depending on the school. One team who still won’t slide is Long Beach State, where we kick things off at the top as the 49ers continue to dominate their competition:
1. LONG BEACH STATE 49ERS
- 19-0 (4-0, Big West)
- Last Week: #1; Def. #10 UCSB (3-0), at #10 UCSB (3-1)
- Upcoming Week: vs. #4 UC Irvine, at #4 UC Irvine
- The 49ers saw a new challenger come across the net in UCSB – the only other 2-0 (at the time) team in the Big West. After dispatching them in straight sets, they earned another win on the road, as they continue to look unstoppable. If anyone can upend them, it might come this week.
2. BYU COUGARS
- 18-4 (8-0, MPSF)
- Last Week: #2; Def. USC (3-1)
- Upcoming Week: None
- The Cougars had a short week with a win over USC, as they stay unbeaten atop the MPSF standings. Now it’s a week off to re-energize and get ready for the home stretch of the season, as they look to get healthier.
3. UCLA BRUINS
- 19-5 (7-2, MPSF)
- Last Week: #4; Def. #14 Concordia Irvine (3-0), #11 Grand Canyon (3-1)
- Upcoming Week: None
- The Bruins are in a spot where they need to win out and hope BYU trips up to earn a share of the regular season league title, and they kept that pace this week. Just like the Cougars, it’s a week off for the Bruins who have that match with BYU coming on April 7.
4. UC IRVINE ANTEATERS
- 16-5 (3-1, Big West)
- Last Week: #5; Def. #16 George Mason (3-0), (RV) UCSD (3-0), at (RV) UCSD (3-2)
- Upcoming Week: at #19 USC
- UC Irvine may have lost a bit of energy after two big matches in a short span before traveling to San Diego. Still, they squeaked out a victory to move into second in the Big West and slide up a spot in the VolleyMob Men’s Top 20.
5. LOYOLA CHICAGO RAMBLERS
- 17-4 (7-1, MIVA)
- Last Week: #6; Def. at #9 Lewis (3-0)
- Upcoming Week: vs. #12 Ball State, vs. #14 Fort Wayne
- The Ramblers took their challenge for the MIVA lead with Lewis with an exclamation for the second time, as they improve to 6-0 in sets against the Flyers. That keeps them a match ahead of Ohio State and Ball State in the league, with even more distance on Lewis, as the Cardinals come to town this week.
6. PEPPERDINE WAVES
- 13-6 (6-3, MPSF)
- Last Week: #8; Def. #14 Concordia Irvine (3-0), #11 Grand Canyon (3-0), #3 Hawaii (3-1)
- Upcoming Week: None
- Pepperdine did plenty of work before their off week in the MPSF, as they swept Concordia Irvine and Grand Canyon. The true prize victory though was over Hawaii – which was slightly watered down after CSUN won two straight against them. Still, that victory pushes them back into the top six.
7. HAWAII RAINBOW WARRIORS
- 13-6 (1-3, Big West)
- Last Week: #3; Lost at #15 CSUN (0-3), at #15 CSUN (0-3), at #8 Pepperdine (1-3)
- Upcoming Week: None
- The Rainbow Warriors have now lost four straight and are in a similar funk to what UCLA went through a few weeks back. They’ll need to turn that around following a week off as their once solid footing in at-large territory is now up in the air.
8. OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
- 15-4 (6-2, MIVA)
- Last Week: #7; Def. at #17 Penn State (3-2), at #19 Saint Francis (3-0)
- Upcoming Week: at Quincy, at Lindenwood
- The Buckeyes struck two victories in the week, but were heavily challenged on the road with non men’s volleyball-league but Big Ten foe Penn State. They slide a spot due to Pepperdine’s big win, as still the Buckeye’s best wins are over Fort Wayne, Ball State and Penn State – which isn’t as good as some of the west coast schools.
9. LEWIS FLYERS
- 14-8 (5-3, MIVA)
- Last Week: #9; Lost vs. #6 Loyola Chicago (0-3)
- Upcoming Week: vs. #14 Fort Wayne, vs. #12 Ball State
- Lewis missed their opportunity to cause chaos atop the MIVA standings, although they stay at number nine as they have a better record, deeper resume (although not as top-heavy) and a head-to-head win over CSUN at 10. It’s already that time of year for senior night (against Ball State), as they get two cracks at top 15 opponents this week.
10. CSUN MATADORS
- 12-7 (2-2, Big West)
- Last Week: #15; Def. #3 Hawaii (3-0), #3 Hawaii (3-0)
- Upcoming Week: None
- CSUN earned their week off ahead, as they swept Hawaii twice. No other team has beaten the Rainbow Warriors both times in a two-match set either, so the Matadors vault into the top 10. If they continue their strong play, they could be an underdog to watch out for in the Big West tournament come mid-April.
11. UC SANTA BARBARA GAUCHOS
- 9-7 (2-2, Big West)
- Last Week: #10; Lost at #1 LBSU (0-3), vs. #1 LBSU (1-3)
- Upcoming Week: None
- UCSB couldn’t put the first dent into LBSU’s season, but did take a rare set from the 49ers in the second match. That puts them in the mess of 2-2 teams in Big West play, as they look to shine following a bye week with matches at UCLA and against CSUN/Hawaii/UC Irvine twice.a
12. BALL STATE CARDINALS
- 13-9 (6-2, MIVA)
- Last Week: #12; Def. at #13 Fort Wayne (3-2), vs #13 Fort Wayne (3-0)
- Upcoming Week: at #5 Loyola Chicago, at #9 Lewis
- Two more conference wins for Ball State over a solid Fort Wayne team just keeps them humming along as they have kind of flown under the MIVA radar. Here they are though, sitting just a match behind Loyola Chicago, which they can change with what would be their second win over the Ramblers should they nab one on the road.
13. GRAND CANYON LOPES
- 15-8 (2-6, MPSF)
- Last Week: #11; Lost at #4 UCLA (1-3), at #8 Pepperdine (0-3)
- Upcoming Week: vs. #15 Concordia Irvine
- Grand Canyon’s MPSF record doesn’t look so hot, but they can resurrect it a bit as three of their final four league matches come against the non-top three teams. That starts this week as they look to avoid the season sweep to Concordia Irvine.
14. FORT WAYNE MASTODONS
- 15-7 (3-5, MIVA)
- Last Week: #13; Lost vs. #12 Ball State (2-3), at #12 Ball State (0-3)
- Upcoming Week: at #9 Lewis, at #5 Loyola Chicago
- Fort Wayne missed another chance to reach up and knock off one of the top teams in the league. They’ve been so competitive and have won the matches they’re supposed to, but are still looking to get over the hump against the league’s best, which they can do this week on the road twice.
15. CONCORDIA IRVINE EAGLES
- 10-12 (3-4, MPSF)
- Last Week: #14; Def. Harvard (3-1); Lost at #4 UCLA (0-3), at #8 Pepperdine (0-3)
- Upcoming Week: at #13 Grand Canyon, at Benedictine, at Ottawa
- The Eagles win came over one of the better teams in the EIVA in Harvard, but they couldn’t grab any sets in league play this week. A victory over Grand Canyon would do wonders though, as they look to get the season sweep before dipping back out of conference.
16. GEORGE MASON PATRIOTS
- 10-10 (6-0, EIVA)
- Last Week: #16; Lost at #5 UC Irvine (0-3)
- Upcoming Week: at Charleston, at Charleston
- The stretch of matches on the west coast didn’t go well for the Patriots, but now they get back into where they’ve made the most noise in EIVA action. It’s a tough stretch there as well though, as the league-leaders are on the road for four in a row.
17. PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS
- 11-8 (6-2, EIVA)
- Last Week: #17; Lost vs. #7 Ohio State (2-3); Def. #19 Saint Francis (3-0)
- Upcoming Week: None
- Penn State’s losing streak dipped to five in a row with a loss to Ohio State, but they seemed to be playing better in the defeat. That carried over to a sweep of Saint Francis – which technically mattered more being in league play – as they look to spring off of it to a strong finish in EIVA play.
18. MCKENDREE BEARCATS
- 8-10 (4-5, MIVA)
- Last Week: #18; Def. Lindenwood (3-1)
- Upcoming Week: at Quincy, vs. Princeton, vs. Princeton
- Following their first week being ranked in the VolleyMob Men’s Top 20, McKendree backed it up with a win over Lindenwood. Two matches with a hot-Princeton squad loom ahead as they look to remain in the listings though.
19. USC TROJANS
- 6-15 (2-5, MPSF)
- Last Week: UR; Lost at #2 BYU (1-3); Def. at #20 Stanford (3-1)
- Upcoming Week: vs. #4 UC Irvine
- USC goes from ranked to unranked and back to ranked this week after they had another competitive loss and got over the hump for a victory over Stanford. The Trojans look like a team that could bust out in 2019, but for now in 2018 they’ll look to finish the year with the occasional wins and close losses to good teams.
20. SAINT FRANCIS RED FLASH
- 8-15 (3-5, EIVA)
- Last Week: #19; Lost vs. #7 Ohio State (0-3), at #17 Penn State (0-3)
- Upcoming Week: None
- Saint Francis couldn’t garner a single set of action this week, as they were swept by a pair of ranked opponents. They cling onto the final spot in the rankings for the time being, with an off week ahead to reset and make a final push.
On the Cusp/’Receiving Votes’:
Note: * indicates ranked last week; (#) is what they were ranked
Barton (14-6, 11-0 Conf. Carolinas)
Stanford (4-17, 1-7 MPSF)
UCSD (9-12, 0-4 Big West)
Past Rankings:
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