Jim BurgessThree time All-American setter and returning SEC Player of the Year Kelly Murphy leads a Florida team that's ranked No. 9 in the preseason poll.The journey that is the 2011 NCAA Division I women's volleyball season begins this week, heading toward its final destination, the Alamodome in San Antonio, for the national championship in mid-December.
Penn State has won four straight titles and could contend for a fifth. The Pac-12 is loaded with talent, boasting four teams (USC, Cal, Stanford and Washington) in the preseason top 10.
Texas, with 25 postseason tournament appearances in 28 years, is back in the mix, looking for a second national title. Florida, coming off a 29-2 season, promises to be a force from the South.
Here are five storylines to watch during the coming season:
1. The dynasty
The Penn State Nittany Lions, led by veteran coach Russ Rose, are one of college sports' most amazing success stories -- confirmed by four consecutive NCAA championships. Rose, who took over the program in 1979, owns a career coaching record of 1,033-164 and an .863 winning percentage, which ranks best in NCAA history.
At Penn State, Rose's teams have never posted worse than a 22-win season. In 32 seasons, he has coached 64 All-Americans, having at least one on his team every season except 2001. The 2008 national championship team, which went 38-0, featured six All-Americans.
"We had a great run," Rose said of the four straight titles. "And this year we have a team with little to minimal experience, and we know we are going to be in the pack. Our goals are to get better and see if we can be relevant late in the year."
Six players -- three of them four-year starters -- were lost to graduation from last year's championship team. The 2011 edition is young, with 13 freshmen or sophomores among the 17 players, but they still earned the No. 1 preseason ranking.
Sophomore Deja McClendon returns after a season that included national freshman of the year honors, a second-team All-American selection and a postseason performance that made her only the second freshman voted NCAA championship MVP.
