Feb. 8, 2005

After spending two weeks at No. 15 in the USA Today/AVCA Top 15 poll, the George Mason men's volleyball team ascended one spot in the rankings, moving up to No. 14 after defeating New York University this past weekend, 3-1.

The Patriots entered the poll on Jan. 25 after starting the season 3-0 with a win over then 14th-ranked Ball State. The Patriots stayed at No. 15 after a 3-1 win over Springfield College, ranked No. 3 in NCAA Division III. New York University was ranked No. 2 in Division III and the Patriots' next opponent, Juniata, is ranked No. 1 in Division III.

The Patriots swapped spots in the poll with Lewis, the 2003 NCAA Division I-II national champions. Lewis dropped to 15th while Southern California dropped out of the national rankings. Moving into the top 15 and leaping over both Mason and Lewis was Loyola-Chicago, which defeated NAIA power California Baptist and then 9th-ranked Pacific.

The Patriots gained five points from last week's poll to this week's poll, moving from 27 points to 32 points. The Patriots are ranked this year for the first time since 1995, when they finished the season ranked 12th. Mason takes on Juniata on Wednesday and Ball State on Saturday. Both those matches are in Fairfax, Va. at John Linn Memorial Gymnasium.