The Oregon volleyball team will open the 2017 season in the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s top 25 after landing at No. 18 in the preseason coach’s poll released. The Ducks, entering their first season under head coach Matt Ulmer, climb up three spots from their final 2016 ranking. Oregon went 21-10 overall and reached the NCAA Tournament for the sixth straight year last season. Oregon lands in the preseason top 25 with a roster that returns 12 letter winners from 2016, including four players who averaged better than 2.00 kills per set and six who averaged more than 1.00 per set. The Ducks will open the year with the fourth-highest AVCA preseason ranking among Pac-12 teams, with defending national champion Stanford leading the way at No. 2. Washington is right behind the Cardinal at No. 3, and UCLA landed inside the top 15 at No. 13. Utah (23) and Arizona (24) round out the Pac-12 teams in the top 25. Oregon will kick off its 2017 season against a pair of top-5 teams at the VERT Challenge in Gainesville, Fla. The Ducks will face No. 5 Nebraska in their season-opener on August 25 before facing top-ranked Texas, last year’s NCAA runner-up, on August 26. Florida, the host of the VERT Challenge this year, landed at No. 12 in the preseason poll.
