The two huge road victories last weekend that put the Gophers volleyball team in first place in the Big Ten also has given the team a big lift in the poll: Minnesota now stands at No. 4.
The Gophers moved up five spots — Southern California is undefeated and ranked No. 1, followed by Texas and Penn State — after winning at Nebraska (ranked 9th) and Iowa on back-to-back nights. The No. 4 ranking is the highest for the Gophers since 2009.
In the RPI rankings, the Gophers moved up to the sixth spot. The RPI is one of the tools used by the Selection Committee to seed teams for the NCAA tournament. Four Big Ten teams are in the top 10: Ohio State (4), Gophers, Nebraska (7) and Penn State (8).
The Gophers (9-1 Big Ten; 17-3 overall) start a four-game homestand Wednesday against Indiana. After the Hoosiers, Purdue, Michigan State and Michigan visit.
Two players honored
Junior middle blocker Hannah Tapp and freshman setter Samantha Seliger-Swenson both received Big Ten weekly honors Monday. Tapp was named a Co-Player of the Week, while Seliger-Swenson garnered both setter of the week and co-freshman of the week. It is Tapp's first Big Ten Player of the Week honor, and the sixth honor for Seliger-Swenson this year.
Over the course of last weekend, Tapp had 24 kills to average 3.43 per set, all while hitting .444. Last Friday against then-No. 3 Nebraska, Tapp had a career-high 17 kills, while she committed just three errors in 28 attempts and hit .500. She also added four block assists. On Saturday, Tapp followed with a seven-kill performance against Iowa.
Seliger-Swenson had 94 assists over the weekend, including 54 against the Huskers. That total marked the most for her this season in a four-set match.
Staff reports
