CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) - Pitt was voted the preseason favorite to win the 2025 Atlantic Coast Conference Volleyball Championship for the second straight year by the league’s volleyball head coaches, it was announced on Thursday.
Pitt earned the overall No. 1 seed in the NCAA Volleyball Tournament for the first time in program history last season, advancing to the semifinals of the NCAA Volleyball Championship for the fourth straight year. The Panthers received 10 first-place votes and 279 total points, just eight points ahead of Louisville, who earned six first-place votes. Stanford, who enters its second season as a member of the ACC, received two first-place votes and 264 points.
Louisville will enter the season at No. 2 in the preseason poll following a trip to the 2024 NCAA Volleyball Championship match. The Cardinals took down No. 1 ranked Pitt in the semifinals to advance to the title match for the second time in program history before falling to Penn State in the championship.
Stanford came in third with 264 points, followed by SMU (243) and North Carolina (212). Georgia Tech earned 210 points and was picked sixth, while Miami (190), Florida State (180), Virginia (135) and NC State (134) rounded out the top 10. The Wolfpack was followed by Duke (127), Notre Dame (126), Boston College (96), California (90), Wake Forest (84), Clemson (62), Syracuse (31) and Virginia Tech (20).
The Panthers led all schools with four student-athletes on the Preseason All-ACC Team, while Louisville, SMU and Stanford had three apiece. Miami had two student-athletes named to the team while Georgia Tech, North Carolina and Notre Dame added one each.
Louisville’s Chloe Chicoine and Cara Cresse, Miami’s Flormarie Heredia Colon, Pitt’s Olivia Babcock and Bre Kelley, SMU’s Malaya Jones and Stanford’s Elia Rubin were all named to the 2025 AVCA Player of the Year Watchlist. All seven players were named to the 2025 Preseason All-ACC Volleyball team.
Three teams earned spots in the final American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll following last season: Louisville at No. 2, Pitt at No. 4 and Georgia Tech at No. 16. The 2025 AVCA Preseason Poll will be released in early August.
2025 Preseason ACC Volleyball Coaches Poll
1. Pitt, 279 | 10 First-Place Votes
2. Louisville, 271 | 6 First-Place Votes
3. Stanford, 264 | 2 First-Place Votes
4. SMU, 243
5. North Carolina, 212
6. Georgia Tech, 210
7. Miami, 190
8. Florida State, 180
9. Virginia, 135
10. NC State, 134
11. Duke, 127
12. Notre Dame, 126
13. Boston College, 96
14. California, 90
15. Wake Forest, 84
16. Clemson, 62
17. Syracuse, 31
18. Virginia Tech, 20
2025 Preseason All-ACC Volleyball Team
Larissa Mendes, Georgia Tech
Nayelis Cabello, Louisville
Chloe Chicoine, Louisville
Cara Cresse, Louisville
Flormarie Heredia Colon, Miami
Ariana Rodriguez, Miami
Safi Hampton, North Carolina
Morgan Gaerte, Notre Dame
Olivia Babcock, Pitt
Blaire Bayless, Pitt
Ryla Jones, Pitt
Bre Kelley, Pitt
Favor Anyanwu, SMU
Averi Carlson, SMU
Malaya Jones, SMU
Jordyn Harvey, Stanford
Ipar Kurt, Stanford
Elia Rubin, Stanford