Pitt volleyball fell just short of its ultimate goal last season, but head coach Dan Fisher and his squad are once again poised for a shot at the national championship.
Pitt is coming off its Blue/Gold scrimmage over the weekend. With just one more preseason matchup left, the Panthers enter the season ranked No. 4 in the AVCA preseason poll — the second straight season in the Top 5 and the highest-ever preseason ranking.
Pitt is behind Texas (1,503 points), Nebraska (1,474) and Wisconsin (1,391) in the poll.
Pitt is the highest-ranked ACC squad, after being selected No. 1 by the conference media earlier this month, but Stanford (1,228 points) and Louisville (1,221) check in at No. 5 and 6, respectively. The Panthers will face off against No. 7 Penn State (1,005), No. 10 Oregon (943), No. 21 USC (300) and No. 24 Marquette (233) in the non-conference slate.
Georgia Tech (665 points) and Florida State (309) are also ranked, checking in at 14 and 20, respectively.
Pitt, of course, is coming off a third consecutive Final 4 run, falling to No. 1 Nebraska last December, but the Panthers are aiming higher — reloading with another strong squad.
Pitt volleyball returns five All-Americans in Rachel Fairbanks (first-team), Olivia Babcock (first-team, Freshman of the Year), Torrey Stafford (third-team), Emmy Kilka (honorable mention) and Valeria Vazquez Gomez (second-team, 2022), along with Cat Flood, Blaire Bayless, Dillyn Griffin, Bre Kelley and Haiti Tautua’a.
In-coming freshmen Bianca Garibaldi, Ryla Jones, Kiana Dinn and Mallorie Meyer will also look to crack the rotation this season — with Garibaldi and Jones arriving early to work with the team over the spring.
Pitt released its full 2024 schedule, and there are notable non-conference and ACC matchups on the slate. Pitt will play 15 squads that qualified for the NCAA Tournament last season — five of which advanced to the Sweet 16 and beyond.
Pitt will conclude the preseason with an exhibition against Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich. on Aug. 24.
Pitt opens the 2024 on the road, traveling to Eugene, Ore. to take on a talented Ducks squad that knocked off the Panthers in five sets last September and advanced to the Elite 8 in each of the past two seasons.
ACC play kicks off on the road against Clemson (Sept. 27), the first of a four-game road trip that includes Georgia Tech (Sept. 29), Boston College (Oct. 4) and Syracuse (Oct. 6).
Pitt will have ranked matchups against Oregon, USC, Penn State and Marquette in the non-conference slate before facing Georgia Tech (twice), Stanford, Louisville (twice) and Florida State in the conference slate.
well-deserved. great job ladies … keep it going. H2P !
Coach Fisher is a phenomenal coach! We need to do whatever we can to ensure he has the tools to succeed! It’s nice having a fall sport that is title contender and force to be reckon with. If only Football had that kind of success…