Men's Volleyball tenth in the nation
| Published: 02/18/2010 |
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The MSOE men's volleyball team became the first program in the school's history to be ranked in the top ten in the country in their respective sport. On Tuesday, Feb. 16, in the AVCA Top 15 Division III Coaches Poll, the Raiders moved up in the poll from twelfth to number ten in the nation. In the past two seasons, MSOE has finished the season among the top 15 ranked programs in the nation; 14th in 2008 and 13th in 2009.
"This is our first time we were ranked in the top ten in the nation, super ceding the 2007 hockey team which was ranked #11," said Dan Harris, MSOE Director of Athletics. "The team has been impressive this season and we are looking to move further up in the polls."
Head Coach Brian Gibboney, who is in his sixth year at MSOE, has nothing but praise for his players. "Our team has worked hard and is deserving of the ranking. The group of seniors had this goal in mind since their freshman year. This is just one of the milestones we are striving for this year. We have a lot of matches left on the schedule and many of our opponents will be aiming to defeat us now."
The MSOE Raiders are 7-5 for the season, 7-1 against NCAA Division III teams. Their only Division III loss was to #5 Carthage, a 34-32, 30-27, 19-30, 25-30, 15-13, five-set heartbreaker. Currently, MSOE has a 2-1 Midwest III Volleyball Conference record and are in second place behind Carthage. The other four losses were to nationally ranked NCAA Division I and NAIA programs.
The team is striving to receive the West-Midwest bid for the 2010 Molten Invitational Tournament, to be held April 16 - 17, 2010, in Kenosha, Wisconsin. MSOE's top rival for that position is the University of Santa Cruz Banana Slugs, who are currently ranked second in the nation.
The four team tournament will consist of the winner of the Northeast Collegiate Volleyball Association (NECVA), the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA), the host team (Carthage College) and a West-Midwest bid.
