After Sha’Dare McNeal hurt her knee in first match of the year, the Longhorns altered their lineup to compensate. Now they face a new challenge: losing Khat Bell for the rest of the season.

“We’ve got a very talented group, and there will be players ready to step up and play at a high level,” said head coach Jerritt Elliott. “We’re still in the national championship picture. We still have a lot of confidence in what our group can do and we’ll get this group ready.”

He said the team needs to get comfortable with the lineup and the team will work on getting acclimated with different players next to them. With six matches left on the schedule, players like freshman Haley Eckerman and senior Rachael Adams are going to need to lead the team.

Elliott said it is important that the team remembers that they are still a very good team, even without Bell.

“We’re going to have to do a lot of studying over the next couple of weeks to make sure we have the right lineup out on the floor,” Elliott said.

The No. 8 Longhorns (17-4, 10-1) return home on Saturday to play Kansas State, who they swept earlier this season.