The Nebraska volleyball team will start the 2015 season tied at No. 5 in the AVCA Coaches Preseason Poll, released on Wednesday.

The Huskers tied Wisconsin with 1,275 points to share the No. 5 spot, the Huskers’ best ranking in the poll since Oct. 29, 2012. Nebraska returns all but one starter from last year’s team, which finished with a 23-10 record, a trip to the NCAA Regional Final for the third straight year and a No. 8 final ranking.

Defending champion Penn State, with 54-of-62 first-place votes, earned the No. 1 spot. Stanford, Texas and Florida were Nos. 2, 3 and 4, respectively. Six Big Ten teams were ranked, including four in the top eight, as Illinois came in at No. 8. Ohio State and Michigan State are 14th and 19th, respectively.

The Huskers are scheduled to play 11 of their 30 matches against teams ranked in the preseason top 25, including eight against teams ranked in the top 14. Nebraska also has five more matches scheduled against teams receiving votes.

With the release of the first 2015 weekly poll, the Huskers have now been ranked in each of the AVCA’s 479 all-time polls, dating back to 1982, joining Stanford as the only teams to be ranked in every poll. Nebraska has been ranked in the top 10 in 426 of those 479 polls, the second-highest total of any team in the country.

The Red/White Scrimmage will be held on Saturday, Aug. 22 at 7 p.m. The Huskers open their season on Friday, Aug. 28, against Tulsa at 7 p.m. at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

Head Coach John Cook previewed the 2015 season at a preseason press conference.