LEXINGTON, Ky. – The St. Olaf College volleyball team earned its first national ranking since the start of the 2011 season by breaking into the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) NCAA Division III Coaches Top 25 Poll at No. 23 on Tuesday afternoon.

St. Olaf entered the AVCA Top 25 for the first time since being ranked No. 21 in the first poll of the 2011 season on Sept. 6, 2011 and is nationally-ranked for the 84th week in program history. The Oles had been receiving votes in the national poll for the last six weeks and broke into the top 25 after sweeping Concordia-Moorhead and No. 5 Saint Benedict on Friday and Saturday.

The win over the fifth-ranked Bennies was St. Olaf's second against a nationally-ranked opponent this season after the Oles topped then-No. 11 Augsburg in five sets on Oct. 2. St. Olaf was one of four Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) programs to be nationally-ranked, joining No. 12 Saint Benedict, No. 16 Augsburg and No. 17 St. Thomas.

Through 24 matches, St. Olaf is 21-3 overall, including 4-2 in the MIAC, and ranks 19th in the country in winning percentage playing against the 28th-toughest schedule out of 429 NCAA Division III programs to date. The opponents the Oles have played so far have a combined winning percentage of .625.

As a team this season, St. Olaf leads NCAA Division III in assists (1,164) and is second in kills (1,232), while ranking No. 11 in assists per set (12.65), 14th in digs (1,568) and 19th in kills per set (13.39).

Next up for the Oles is a trip to Winona, Minn. to face Saint Mary's on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 3 p.m.