A lot of teams got votes in the first coaches/media volleyball poll of the 2014, and that could make for a competitive season.

It's crowded on top of the 4A rankings. Cheyenne East is #1, but Kelly Walsh is 1 vote behind at #2. The Lady Trojans beat the Lady Thunderbirds at the Riverton Invitational, but East finished ahead of KW at the Gillette Invitational. Natrona sits comfortably at 3rd, and the defending champs are within striking distance of the other 2. After that, there's some distance in the rankings. Riverton is at #4, and Central is at #5, by 1 vote ahead of Rock Springs and Evanston, who both just missed out. Conference play starts this week. #1 East managed to survive a 5-game scare home vs. #5 Central. This weekend, #4 Riverton along with Evanston visit #2 Kelly Walsh and #3 Natrona.

The 3A may not mean much right now, because every 3A team is going to be at the Rawlins Invitational this weekend, which is a somewhat of a preview of the state tournament. Defending State Champ Powell is #1, after winning both the Douglas Invitational, and the Border War Invitational at Billings, Montana. Mountain View occupies the #2 ranking. Lovell is #3, although they just got swept at Powell earlier this week. Behind them is Rawlins at #4, and Douglas at #5, by 1 vote ahead of Worland.

A mild surprise in 2A, is that defending champ Kemmerer, did not get a vote. Big Horn occupies the #1 ranking, with Wright checking in at #2 and Burns at #3. Those 3 teams, along with Kemmerer, and a number of others, will be playing at the Big Horn Invitational this weekend. The rest of the rankings has Southeast at #4, and Lyman at #5, by 1 vote in front of Thermopolis.

The 2 undefeated teams in 1A share the top spot for now. Hulett and Little Snake River are co-#1's. Don't count out Cokeville, even though they are ranked #3. The 3-time defending state champs usually play 90% of their schedule, against non-1A competition each season, and it's been awhile since a 1A team has beaten them. Encampment takes the #4 ranking and Upton is #5. LSR visits Encampment on Friday, and then both teams head to the Hanna Invitational on Saturday.

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