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No.14 Texas Volleyball vs. Tennessee
Texas: 16-6 | Tennessee: 15-10
Wednesday, November 27 – 7:00 PM (Central Time)
Gregory Gymnasium | Austin, Texas
TV: SEC Network
match
The Longhorns close out the regular season with home games against Tennessee on Wednesday and Ole Miss on Saturday. Texas holds an 11-1 record against Tennessee, and the teams met in the NCAA regional semifinals last season, with the Longhorns winning a thrilling five-set match to win the national championship. Texas and Ole Miss have only played twice, with the Longhorns winning in 2011 in Austin and 2005 in Oxford. The Longhorns’ five seniors, Kionilei Akana, Thor Franklin, Regan Rutherford, Madisen Skinner and Jenna Wenas, will be recognized on Senior Day against Ole Miss.
winning streak
Texas played very well for long stretches of the season, winning nine straight games, including the first seven SEC games. During that streak, Texas hit .300 and averaged 14.13 kills per set, 13.07 assists and 2.82 blocks per set. For the season, Texas is batting .275, averaging 13.40 kills per set, 12.41 assists per set and 2.59 blocks per set.
Singletary’s dominant stretch
Middle blocker Marianna Singletary put together a dominant performance in October and was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week for the third consecutive week. Singletary was also named the league’s Player of the Week in two of those three weeks. This season, she has 120 total blocks and ranks seventh in the nation with 1.52 blocks per set. She also had 142 kills and a .334 batting average on the season.
The SEC era is underway.
Texas is off to a great start as they embark on a new era in the SEC, winning their first seven league games. The Longhorns have a long history of conference dominance, winning 29 championships in league history, including 16 Big 12 titles and 13 Southwest Conference championships. The 2023 title marks a record seventh consecutive Big 12 Championship for the Longhorns, who have won or shared 12 of the past 13 league championships and 15 of the past 17 league championships. Ta. Texas left the Big 12 Conference having won more league championships than any other program.
current national champion
The Longhorns entered the season as back-to-back national champions, defeating Nebraska in the 2023 title game in Tampa, Florida. Texas returns five starters from the title-winning team, including NCAA Final Four All-Tournament team member Madisen Skinner. Ella Swindle and Emma Holter. The 2023 national championship will be the program’s fifth after winning the AIAW title in 1981 and NCAA titles in 1988, 2012 and 2022.
National Player of the Year Watch List
The Longhorn trio of Regan Rutherford, Madisen Skinner and Marianna Singletary have been named to the AVCA Division I Player of the Year Watch List. The trio has 49 players from 25 schools on the watch list. The list will be narrowed down in November and the committee will be able to add players who are not part of the original group to the November list. The final step is to reveal the names of the finalists, which will be announced before the AVCA convention. The 2024 AVCA Athlete of the Year will then be announced during the tournament on Friday, Dec. 20, in Louisville, Kentucky.
senior skinner
Madisen Skinner established himself as one of the best players in the country last season and is one of the top returning players in 2024. With more than 1,700 career kills, Skinner ranks 13th in career kills among active Division I players. He is a three-time U.S. champion. Skinner, the 2023 VolleyballMag.com Player of the Year, will play her final season as a college volleyball player in 2024. Last season, Skinner was ranked No. 6. Nationally, they ranked 7th with 4.80 kills per set and 7th with 547 total kills. Her 547 kills rank third all-time by a Longhorn and the most since Mila Topic (593) in 2004. Skinner further stepped up her game in the postseason, averaging 5.43 kills per set and a .316 batting average, and was selected to the NCAAs. Best player in the final four.
road warriors
The Longhorns have won 49 of their past 54 road games dating back to the 2019 season. Since the 2011 season, Texas has a record of 129-23 (.849) in actual road games, with only seven of those losses coming to unranked teams.
Ranking
Texas, ranked No. 1 in the SEC Coaches Poll, is one of four teams in the SEC’s top 25, with Kentucky ranked 12th, Florida State 18th and Missouri ranked 24th. It has become. In non-conference play, Texas played four nationally ranked teams: Wisconsin, Minnesota, Stanford, and Baylor. Texas began the 2024 season as the No. 1 team in the AVCA Preseason Coaches Poll for the fifth time (2013, 2017, 2021, 2023, 2024). The Longhorns have finished in the top four in the AVCA preseason poll for the 18th consecutive season and in the top two for the 11th time in the past 18 seasons.
rank and file
UT has a 158-61 (.721) record against ranked opponents over the past 21 seasons (2004-24) and 71 at home against ranked opponents at Gregory Gymnasium (68-15) and Frank College. He boasts a win-15 (.826) record. Erwin Center (3-0) in between. The Longhorns had a 14-2 record against top-ranked opponents last season.
attendance
The Longhorns extended their streak of sold out games to 38 games starting in the 2022 season. Texas ranked fifth in the nation last season with an average attendance of 4,495 for its 16 home games. The Longhorns played all 16 home games to sold out houses in 2023 and finished the 2022 season with 12 consecutive sold out games at Gregory Gym. Texas State, which faced Ohio State in the 2022 NCAA Regional Final, set a Gregory Gym attendance record with a crowd of 5,344.
US Volleyball Hall of Fame
Gerrit Elliott, the winningest coach in Texas volleyball history, will be inducted into the USA Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2023. Elliott received USA Volleyball’s All-Time Great Coach Award, which recognizes success and excellence in coaching volleyball over an extended period of time. With 561 wins at Texas, Elliott surpassed Mick Haley as the winningest coach in Longhorns history. Elliott also achieved his 600th career win last season and enters the 2023 season with a career record of 639 wins and 126 losses.
MBU
For more than 20 years under head coach Gerrit Elliott, the Longhorns have led the charge starting with Leticia Armstrong (2003-2008) and Brandi McGee (2003-2007), followed by Lauren Paolini (2005-2008). Until then, he has created a tradition of being an All-American middle blocker. ), Rachel Adams (2008-11), Hat Bell (2011-14), Molly McKage (2012-15), Chiaka Ogbogu (2013-17), Brion Butler (2017-21), Asjia O’Neill (2019-23). These nine All-American middle blockers have earned a total of 25 All-American honors dating back to 2005.
More on MBU…
Following the graduation of All-American Asjia O’Neal, two young players are poised to carry on the legacy of Texas’ great middle blocker. Aiden Ames will be the Longhorns’ first true freshman middle blocker to start since Chiaka Ogbogu in 2013. Redshirt sophomore Marianna Singletary has made strides this season and has been named SEC Defensive Player of the Week three times. The Longhorns ranked third in the nation with 2.89 blocks per set last season, and had double-digit blocks in 21 of 32 games last season.
