No. 1 Texas Volleyball vs. No. 3 Wisconsin
Texas: 0-0 | Wisconsin: 0-0
Sunday, September 1 – 11:30 a.m. CT
Fiserv Forum | Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Television: FOX
No. 1 Texas Volleyball vs. No. 18 Minnesota
Texas: 0-0 | Minnesota: 0-0
Monday, September 2 – 6:30 p.m. CT
Fiserv Forum | Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Television: FS1
The encounters
Texas opens the season at the State Farm Women’s Volleyball Showcase against two familiar opponents, Wisconsin and Minnesota. The Longhorns and Badgers will meet for the 11th time in history after facing each other in the Final Four last season. Texas leads the series 6-4 after winning the NCAA semifinals last season. Texas and Minnesota will meet for the fourth consecutive year and 14th time overall, with the Longhorns leading the series 8-5.
Reigning national champions
The Longhorns enter the season as two-time national champions after sweeping Nebraska in the 2023 title game in Tampa, Florida. Texas returns five regulars from the title-winning team, including members of the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament team Madisen Skinner, Ella Swindle And Emma HolderThe 2023 national championship was the program’s fifth after winning the AIAW title in 1981 and the NCAA title in 1988, 2012 and 2022.
PRE-SEASON RANKINGS
Texas begins the 2024 season as the No. 1 team in the AVCA Preseason Coaches’ Poll for the fifth time (2024, 2023, 2021, 2017, 2013). The Longhorns appear in the top four of the AVCA Preseason Poll for the 18th consecutive season and hold the top two spots for the 11th time in the last 18 seasons. Texas, which was ranked first in the SEC Coaches’ Poll, is one of six SEC teams in the top 25: Kentucky is No. 9, Florida comes in at No. 11, Tennessee is No. 15, Arkansas is No. 19 and Georgia rounds out the poll at No. 25. In non-conference play, Texas will face four No. 3 teams in the preseason rankings – Wisconsin, Minnesota (No. 18), Stanford (No. 5) and Baylor (No. 23).
PRE-SEASON PRICES
Madisen Skinner led a group of four Longhorns who were named to the Preseason Volleyball All-SEC Team, Emma Holder, Ella Swindle and Kentucky Transfer Reagan RutherfordThe Longhorns were also named the preseason favorite in the SEC Preseason Coaches Poll, making Texas the conference’s preseason favorite for the 14th consecutive year.
SENIOR SKINNER
Three-time national champion and VolleyballMag.com national player of the year 2023. Madisen Skinner will begin her final collegiate volleyball season in 2024. Last season, Skinner ranked sixth nationally with 4.80 kills per set and seventh overall with 547 kills. Her 547 kills were the third-most ever by a Longhorn player and the most since Mira Topic (593) in 2004. Skinner elevated her play in the postseason, averaging 5.43 kills per set with a .316 hitting percentage and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Final Four.
LASTING SUCCESS
A model of consistency for over a decade, Texas is the only Division I volleyball team to finish in the top 10 each of the last 18 seasons. The Longhorns have been ranked in the top 10 in each of the last 221 AVCA polls, while Texas was last outside the top 10 on October 11, 2010. The Longhorns have finished in the top 5 in 15 of the last 18 seasons, including 11 consecutive years from 2008-2018. Texas also has the longest active streak of NCAA Regional Semifinal (“Sweet 16”) appearances in the country with 18 consecutive appearances. Of the last 18 Regional Semifinal appearances, the Longhorns have reached 17 NCAA Regional Finals, 11 National Semifinals and seven National Championship games.
CHAMPIONSHIP PEDIGREE
Texas has won 29 conference championships, including 16 Big 12 titles and 13 Southwest Conference championships. The 2023 title was the seventh consecutive Big 12 title for the Longhorns, a record after they won or shared 12 of the last 13 league championships and 15 of the previous 17. Texas left the Big 12 Conference having won more league championships than any other team.
UNITY AND ORDER
UT has a 154-59 (.723) record against ranked opponents over the last 20 seasons (2004-23) and has a 71-15 (.826) home record against ranked opponents at Gregory Gymnasium (68-15) and the Frank Erwin Center (3-0) during that span. The Longhorns went 14-2 against ranked opponents last season.
QB1
Ella Swindle made history in 2024 when she became only the third true freshman setter ever to lead her team to a national championship, and the first since 2016. In the title game against Nebraska, Swindle gave it her all with 21 assists, seven digs, five kills, two service aces and one block. On the season, Swindle averaged 9.54 assists per set and added 92 blocks, 227 digs, 96 kills and 30 aces. She was named the AVCA Southwest Region Freshman of the Year and landed on the Big 12 All-Rookie team.
MBU
Over two decades under the leadership of Head Coach Jerritt ElliottThe Longhorns have a tradition of All-American middle blockers, starting with Leticia Armstrong (2003-08) and Brandy Magee (2003-07), before continuing with Lauren Paolini (2005-08), Rachael Adams (2008-11), Khat Bell (2011-14), Molly McCage (2012-15), Chiaka Ogbogu (2013-17), Brionne Butler (2017-21) and Asjia O’Neal (2019-23) These nine All-American middle blockers have earned a total of 25 All-America honors since 2005.
MBU Continuation…
After completing the All-American Asjia O’NealA trio of young players are ready to continue the legacy of great middle blockers in Texas. Ayden Ames is expected to be the Longhorns’ first true freshman midfielder since Chiaka Ogbogu in 2013. Redshirt sophomore Marianna Singletary and redshirt freshman Nya Bunton will also play a big role this season. The Longhorns ranked third nationally last season with 2.89 blocks per set, while recording double-digit block totals in 21 of last season’s 32 games.
WINNERS WIN
In her first two seasons in Texas alone Emma Holder has played in all 61 games during her career and won two consecutive national championships. As a freshman in 2022, Halter was a defensive specialist, averaging 1.29 digs per set with 21 assists and 12 service aces. Last season, Halter was the Longhorns’ libero in every game and averaged 3.87 digs per set, adding 141 assists and 38 aces. Halter also had perhaps her best performance on the biggest stage, as she tallied 19 digs, seven assists and two aces in the NCAA semifinal win over Wisconsin.
Home advantage
The Longhorns’ 12 of the last 13 Big 12 Championships have been won in large part by home wins. Over the last 14 seasons, Texas has a 211-14 (.938) record in home games. During that same period, the Longhorns have a 114-1 record in home league games. The Longhorns’ only home loss since 2010 came against Oklahoma on October 25, 2014. Texas has won 76 consecutive home league games since the 2014 season. During that streak, the Longhorns have posted 58 sweeps and lost just 23 sets overall.
PARTICIPATION
Texas ranked fifth nationally last season with an average attendance of 4,495 for 16 home games. The Longhorns have extended their sellout streak to 28 straight games since the 2022 season. Texas sold out all 16 home games in 2023 and finished the 2022 season with 12 consecutive sold-out games at Gregory Gym. At the 2022 NCAA Regional Final against Ohio State, Texas set an attendance record with 5,344 fans at Gregory Gym.
USA VOLLEYBALL HALL OF FAME
Jerritt Elliottthe winningest coach in Texas volleyball history, was inducted into USA Volleyball’s Hall of Fame in 2023. Elliott received USA Volleyball’s All-Time Great Coach Award, which recognizes individuals for success and excellence in volleyball coaching over an extended period of time. With 589 wins at Texas, Elliott surpassed Mick Haley as the winningest coach in Longhorns history. Elliott also surpassed the 600 career wins mark during the 2022 season and enters the 2024 season with a career record of 639-126.
