THE FLATS – Georgia Tech volleyball (21-3, 12-2 ACC) has been ranked No. 8 in the Week 11 AVCA/Taraflex Division I Women’s Volleyball Poll, the organization announced on Monday. This is the highest ranking of the season for the Jackets, following the highest ranked home victory in program history, over then-No. 3 Louisville, on Friday. The No. 8 ranking is the highest since non-conference play last season (Sept. 12), when the Jackets were ranked No. 7.
The Jackets receive the No. 8 ranking after defeating then-No. 3 Louisville and Notre Dame over the weekend. The Louisville win marked the second Top 10 victory of the season, the first time in program history the White and Gold have secured multiple Top 10 wins in the same season (No. 8 Penn State – August 26). Tech swept Notre Dame on Sunday thanks to its best defensive effort of the season, holding the Irish to just .020 hitting, the lowest of the season.
This most recent poll marks Georgia Tech’s 66th straight appearance in the AVCA Top 25 and the 33rd Top 10 ranking in program history. This is the latest in a list of accomplishments for Coach Michelle Collier, the 2nd winningest coach in program history (193). The Jackets now own six all-time wins over Top 10 opponents, with four coming in the last three seasons (at No. 2 Pitt, 2021 | vs. No. 10 BYU, 2022 | vs. No. 8 Penn State, 2023 | vs. No. 3 Louisville, 2023).
The Yellow Jackets have proven to be one of the best teams in the ACC this season, leading the conference in both digs/set (15.41) and kills/set (13.80). Tech’s 15.41 digs/set is the second highest among Power 5 defenses. That defensive success is spearheaded by the play of senior Paola Pimentel. The two-time ACC Defensive Player of the Week is currently second in the conference, averaging 4.38 dig/set. The Rio de Janeiro native leads the team with 399 digs this season and is on pace to become the first Jacket to achieve 400 digs in a single season since 2019 (Maddie Tippett). She would be just the sixth Jacket in the modern scoring era (since 2008) to reach the milestone. Additionally, senior outside hitter Tamara Otene has recorded 280 digs this season, tied for the third most by a Power 5 hitter and the most among pins in the ACC.
On the offensive side of the ball, Tech leads the conference with 13.8 kills per set this season, spreading the ball around for one of the most balanced attacks in the country. Otene leads the offense by averaging 3.62 kills/set, the fourth highest in the ACC, alongside junior outside hitter Bianca Bertolino (3.09 kills/set) and freshman opposite Larissa Mendes (2.98 kills/set). All three players are in the Top 300 for kills/set across Division I, making Tech one of three Power 5 programs with three players averaging 2.97 kills/set (Top 300 cutoff) or better this season – along with Miami and Stanford.
Bertolino is coming off an historic performance against Louisville. The Argentinian delivered a career-best seven aces in the win, the most aces in an ACC match since 2017. She is tied for the sixth most aces in a single match in program history and the second-most all-time by a Jacket in an ACC match. She is averaging .62 aces/set this season, tied for the most in Division I. She is closing in on Julia Bergmann’s modern scoring era (since 2008) ace record of 64, set back in 2019.
UP NEXT
Georgia Tech will aim for its third Top 10 victory of the season this weekend when the Jackets host No. 7 Pittsburgh (21-4, 12-2 ACC) on Friday at 5 p.m. inside O’Keefe Gymnasium. The match will be broadcast on ACC Network.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the A-T Fund’s Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes, and the Support The Swarm Fund, created to give fans an opportunity to help Georgia Tech athletics maintain its recent momentum through the financial challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic! To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
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