DENVER – Being ranked No. 3 in NCAA Division II and featured on local television attracts attention.
 
But MSU Denver is used to it.
 
"I don't sense it's affecting our team much," MSU Denver coach Jenny Glenn said. "We understand what the AVCA poll is, and it's awesome to get recognition, but at the end of the day we don't focus on that. We're on to the next opponent. And we're used to everyone playing us tough, home or away. We expect to see everyone's best. That doesn't really change."
 
Next up for the Roadrunners is a weekend road trip for matches Friday at 7 p.m. at UCCS and Saturday at 4 p.m. at CSU-Pueblo.
 
The Roadrunners matched their highest national ranking since 2003 when they rose to No. 3 in this week's national coaches poll – the team was also ranked No. 3 during the spring season, but not all teams were playing across the country and those that didn't play weren't eligible to be ranked.
 
Now, everyone is playing and the Roadrunners have gotten the attention of nearly everyone with a stretch that included the championship of the prestigious Colorado Premier Challenge and four straight wins over ranked teams.
 
At 8-2 overall and 2-0 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, MSU Denver is getting into the two-match-per-weekend routine that is league play.
 
"It's been such a whirlwind at the beginning of the semester with lot of matches jammed into just a few weeks," Glenn said. "Coming off that busy stretch we've had a little bit of recovery time, but the trick is staying sharp, too. So we're trying to fine-tune some things.
 
"This (schedule) is a little bit of an adjustment. Instead of playing two matches in a day and four in a weekend – with not much time to scout or worry about things going wrong or celebrate things going right – now it slows down. There's more time to scout and to spend more time on things. And you're playing teams you're more familiar with, and they're more familiar with you. It's a different rhythm."
 
Foes are familiar with the Roadrunners.
 
Avaline Lai leads the Roadrunners with 3.5 kills per set and a .410 hitting percentage, while Rylee Hladky adds 3.3 kills per set. Alexis Benda is hitting .282 on 2.9 kills per set. Setters Amela Qershia and Jessa Megenhardt direct the offense and average 5.93 and 5.85 assists per set, respectively. Qershia and Hladky each have 19 service aces for an average of 0.48 per set. Ember Canty (0.92) and Mikayla McClinton (0.91) combined to average 1.83 blocks per set, while Ashlyn Cianciulli leads the team with 3.98 digs per set.
 
UCCS is 3-6 overall and 0-2 in the RMAC, but did push two ranked teams to four sets. CSU-Pueblo, which lost to MSU Denver in last spring's RMAC Tournament semifinals, has received votes off and on in the AVCA poll and, like MSU Denver, is 8-2 and 2-0.
 
"Both teams will be really aggressive offensively and will come at us attacking," Glenn said. "So that makes for a fun night."