CHICAGO, Ill. -- After building a 12-4 record, including wins and close matches against some of the top teams in Division III, the North Park women's volleyball team received votes in the Week 5 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 Poll. The Vikings received 11 votes, representing the first time in program history that NPU has been considered a top team in the country.
"I'm proud of the girls and what we've been able to accomplish," said head coach Michael Sopocy. "I'm also very proud out my staff, Joseth Irizarry and Rachel Reeve, for their amazing efforts these past two seasons. We could not accomplish this without them. There's still a lot of season left, and I know we are all hungry for more!"
The Vikings have won 10 of their last 12 matches, including a 3-1 win over U-Chicago (9/23) and Elmhurst (9/21). As a team, the Vikings crack the national top 10 in digs (1,124), fifth in digs per set (19.72), eighth in assists (698) and attacks (2,259), ninth in assists per set (12.25), and 10th in kills (749).
Sophomore outside hitter Adriana Rodriguez remains the nation's kill leader, totaling 292 on the season. She also leads the country in points (326.5), kills per set (5.12), and total attacks (757). Additionally, freshman libero Carolina Aviles' 284 digs is 15th in DIII volleyball while senior setter Christina Gatta's 459 assists comes in at 25th.
A number of familiar opponents are also represented in the poll, including WashU (5), Illinois Wesleyan (21), U-Chicago (28), UW-Oshkosh (29), and Millikin (41).
