Sept. 9, 2002

Manhattan, Kan. - The Kansas State women's volleyball team moved up one spot to No. 24 in the latest AVCA/USA Today Top 25 released on Monday by the organization. The Wildcats have now been ranked in eight straight polls dating back to Nov. 5, 2001.

Reigning NCAA champion Stanford (6-0) remained the consensus No. 1 in the poll, claiming 59 of the 65 first-place votes, while USC (6-0) and Hawai'i (6-0) moved past Nebraska (4-1) for the second and third spots. Besides the fourth-ranked Cornhuskers, other Big 12 teams in the Top 25 were No. 16 Texas A&M and No. 24 Kansas State, while Colorado, Texas and Missouri were all receiving votes.

Kansas State began the season ranked 22nd in the AVCA preseason poll, but fell three spots to No. 25 in the first regular season poll released last week after losing a tight five-game match to 18th-ranked Colorado State in the season opener on Aug. 30.

Kansas State ran its winning streak to four matches on Sunday, as the Wildcats cruised past Arkansas State in three games, 30-15, 30-21, 30-23. The team has swept all four matches in three games since losing the opener to the Rams and extended its game winning streak to 12. The win over the Indians also represented the 34th consecutive win at home over a non-conference opponent.

The road gets tougher this weekend, as the young Wildcat squad faces its toughest test of the season with a trip to the South Florida Adidas Invitational in Tampa, Fla. The Wildcats will face three teams - South Florida, No. 19 Michigan State and Georgia Tech - that were either ranked or receiving votes in the preseason AVCA poll. K-State begins the tournament on Friday, Sept. 13 with a match against the host South Florida Bulls beginning at 7 p.m. CST. The Wildcats conclude the tournament on Saturday against 19th-ranked Michigan State at 1 p.m. CST and Georgia Tech at 5 p.m. CST, who is receiving votes in the latest poll.