OXFORD, Ohio- Indiana University Kokomo remains the team to beat in women's volleyball in the River States Conference, as the Cougars are again the favorites to finish atop the RSC. The Cougars were the top pick in the 2026 RSC Preseason Coaches' Poll. The poll, announced Thursday by the River States Conference office, saw each of the conference's ten head coaches rank the other member schools in order of predicted finish.
Eight of the league's ten head coaches placed the Cougars at the top of the league, following a season that saw IU Kokomo go 16-0 in conference play, running their regular season conference winning streak to 54 matches. IU Kokomo returned to the top of the RSC Tournament by sweeping their way through their three matches, then defeated Reinhardt to advance back to the final site in Sioux City, Iowa. The Cougars went 1-1 in Sioux City, defeating Cornerstone before suffering elimination to Indiana Wesleyan.
St. Mary-of-the-Woods College, who finished with the second seed a year ago at 12-4, placed second in the poll with 69 points, including one of the two remaining first place votes. Last season's second national qualifier, the University of Rio Grande, placed third, placing just one point behind SMWC and earning the final first place vote.
Outside of the top three, Indiana University East placed fourth, with Indiana University Southeast fifth. Indiana University Columbus rounded out the IU schools in sixth, followed by WVU Tech seventh, Kentucky Christian eighth, and Midway University and Brescia University tied for ninth.
Four River States Conference schools begin their seasons with matches on Friday, August 14, all of which come at tournaments away from home. Midway University is the first to play a home match, taking the floor against Georgetown College on August 25.
Conference play is scheduled to begin on Friday, September 11, with Kentucky Christian, St. Mary-of-the-Woods, IU Kokomo and Midway all set to play at home. Conference play will continue through the first week of November, with the conference tournament to follow.
2026 RSC PRESEASON VOLLEYBALL COACHES' POLL
1. IU Kokomo (80 points, 8 first place votes)
2. Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (69 points, 1 first place vote)
3. Rio Grande (68 points, 1 first place vote)
4. IU East (52 points)
5. IU Southeast (50 points)
6. IU Columbus (47 points)
7. WVU Tech (29 points)
8. Kentucky Christian (19 points)
t9. Brescia (18 points)
t9. Midway (18 points)