THE SIDELINES : Vols Move Into Solid 1st Place

Defending NCAA champion Tennessee broke out of a tie with Louisiana Tech to capture the top spot in the first regular season Associated Press women’s basketball poll.

The Vols, which opened Sunday with a 112-39 win over Stetson at Knoxville, received 41 first-place votes and 1,527 points from a nationwide panel of 62 women’s coaches in balloting announced today.

Opening with wins over Prairie View and host Oklahoma State at a tournament in the Midwest, Louisiana Tech was close behind Tennessee with 21 first-place votes and 1,503 points.

Stanford (2-0) remained in third after taking the Communiplex tournament in Cincinnati this weekend with wins over Michigan State and Ohio U. The Cardinals totaled 1,420 points and got the remaining first-place vote.

Long Beach State (2-0), with impressive wins over Eastern Washington and then-No. 17 Maryland, jumped two positions from ninth to seventh.