After a dominant defense of the national title last season, Texas volleyball will look to build upon the depth of its roster and the momentum of the past two seasons as the team starts its journey for a historic three-peat amidst entering the Southeastern Conference.
Despite the loss of players that were integral to the back-to-back championships, like both starting middle blockers Asjia O’Neal and Bella Bergmark, as well as starting opposite hitter Molly Phillips, the Longhorns could look to enter both the SEC and national polls on top.
The roster has a diverse mix of experienced veterans and athletes who are new to the collegiate stage. NCAA’s Most Outstanding Player Madisen Skinner has returned for her senior season with the team and will be joined by former teammate and transfer from Kentucky, opposite hitter Reagan Rutherford. Key returners also include libero Emma Halter, outside hitter Jenna Wenaas and setter Ella Swindle.
Head coach Jerritt Elliott should not run into any issues filling holes in the roster. Texas has a plethora of offensive and defensive weapons, but Elliott has an important decision to make in choosing who to replace O’Neal and Bergmark in the middle with. Redshirt sophomore Marianna Singletary could be the heir to O’Neal’s throne, as she was a frequently used sub last season, achieving 23 kills.
The other starting spot is wide open, and will most likely be chosen between redshirt freshman Nya Bunton and newcomer Ayden Ames, a late flip from Nebraska who was named the 2023 Gatorade High School Volleyball Player of the Year.
The SEC isn’t particularly known to be a strong volleyball conference, as its only national champion prior to Texas joining was Kentucky in 2020, which had Skinner and Rutherford on the team.
However, the Tennessee Volunteers almost put an early end to the Longhorns’ 2023 tournament run in the Sweet 16. Texas had to crawl back from a Vols match point in the fourth set to advance in the tournament.
Looking ahead to the regular season, Florida will be Texas’ biggest challenge in the new conference. Despite being a young team, the Gators have an arsenal of some of the top players in the country in this freshman class, including United States under-21 national team member Jaela Auguste and MaxPreps National Player of the Year Lauren Harden.
Texas cannot afford a slow start to the 2024 season as it did last year, as the Longhorns are slated to face the 2021 National Champions Wisconsin in the season opener. The team will travel to California for the first true test of the season against Stanford in an Elite 8 rematch from last season.
The Longhorns will make their SEC debut against rival Texas A&M in College Station, whom they beat in the first round of the tournament last season.
