Serving victories in Volleyball

Vaqueros look to carry momentum into home opener

Following a 3-0 start to its season at the Furman Invitational in Greenville, South Carolina, the UTRGV Volleyball Team will look to carry this momentum throughout the tournament phase of the 2024 season.

UTRGV Volleyball head coach Todd Lowery said although his team “did some nice things,” he’s looking for the team to improve and build off of the results.

“I thought offensively we were decent,” Lowery said. “I thought we served it really well at times. On the flipside, I don’t think we defended anybody’s right side really well. We gotta get better at that.”

As previously reported by The Rider, a preseason Southland Conference poll picked the Vaqueros to finish second in the conference in itsfirst full season as a member. 

Last season, the Vaqueros played to a 19-12 overall record while finishing 12-4 in the Western Athletic Conference. Asked if these expectations added pressure on the team to perform, Lowery replied it does.

“We’ve talked about that,” Lowery said. “We’ve had a lot of changeover since last year, there’s a lot of new pieces on the floor, so more, ‘Don’t do too much too soon.’”

Seniors Claudia Lupescu and Perris Key both received preseason SLC 2nd team accolades in the same poll. Lowery said this season, Key will play in the middle rather than her natural position on the right side. 

“Obviously [Key and Lupescu] are a big part of what we do,” Lowery said. “[Key] did a tremendous job in the middle helping us win games, and that’s what’s most important.”

Lowery said while the team is deep in the setter and libero positions, it is “not particularly deep in a couple of [other] positions.” This has led to Lowery starting players, particularly Key, to play out of position.

“[Libero and setter] are two positions that we [do] have depth in,” he said. “So, that creates a bit of competition in the gym, which is gonna allow everyone to push forward. … We’re gonna have to move people around.”

Outside hitter Nadine Zech, after dealing with injury issues last season, made an immediate impact in her sophomore season, being named the MVP of the aforementioned Furman Invitational.

Lowery said the team is working to ensure that Zech stays healthy this season. He said when healthy, “she’s definitely a force” on the court.

“My point this year [is] to stay healthy, stay as a group this year,” Zech said. “We have a really nice group. What we did during the summer and what we continue to do is work as a group.”

Lowery said the team will also rely on newcomers to contribute. He said sophomore libero Celaniz Cabrales “did a good job,” while sophomore setter Isabella Costantini “ran the offense at a pretty good clip” at the Furman tournament.

“I just feel like the energy and the structure of the school and the program was something that really caught my attention,” Costantini said. “… This group is really special, and we have a lot of special players that can play a lot of different positions.”

As of press time, results from the weekend’s Zips/CSU Invitational in Ohio were not available. 

After this tournament, the Vaqueros will play their home opener against the Texas Tech Raiders at 6:30 p.m. Thursday. They will then participate in the UTEP/Southeast Showdown in El Paso before beginning conference play.