No. 8 Volleyball Opens Season with Two Top 12 Matchups at AVCA First Serve

Game Notes Press Conference Watch Live (LOU) Watch Live (SMU)

MILWAUKEE, Wisc. – The No. 8 Texas A&M volleyball team opens its 2026 season at the AVCA First Serve where it faces No. 7 Louisville, Friday, at 5 p.m. and No. 11 SMU, Sunday, at 12 p.m.

The defending champion Aggies kick off the 2026 season, facing the Cardinals in a Sweet 16 rematch from last year. A&M battled back from a two-set deficit to defeat Louisville in a five-set thriller, 3-2, to reach the Elite 8. The programs have met eight times in their history, with A&M holding a 6-2 advantage in the all-time series. The programs will face off on a neutral court for the fifth time, and the Aggies once again hold the advantage in those meetings, 3-1.

Turning the page on Sunday, the Maroon & White shift their attention to the Mustangs who similarly to Louisville are coming off a Sweet 16 appearance. A&M and SMU despite being three hours apart have only faced off twice in regular-season competition, with the mustangs taking both contests.

Texas A&M returns to the AVCA First Serve for the second-straight year and this visit marks its third total appearance after debuting in 1997. Last season, the Maroon & White got the ball rolling in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, toppling No. 11 Minnesota in a four-set victory. The win over the Golden Gophers marked head coach Jamie Morrison’s third-straight win in season openers.

The Aggies return eight members of the championship-winning roster from last year, including the NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player Kyndal Stowers. She ranked second on the team last season with 385 kills, averaging 3.5 per set, while tacking on 248 digs and 64 blocks.

Coach Morrison brought in eight new players for the upcoming season, in the form of four transfers and four freshmen. Natalie Ring headlines the group, earning Third Team All-America honors for Marquette in 2025 after a 497 kill season.

In their final tune up before the start of the season, the Aggies secured a decisive 3-1 win over No. 21 Baylor in Waco. A&M swept the opening three frames with a point differential of 75-59, before dropping the final set 23-25. Offensively, transfers Ring and Kaia Castle led the way with 16 and 13 kills, respectively.

The game versus Louisville and SMU will be streamed on ESPN2, fans can visit 12thman.com for updates on stats and results.

Head Coach Jamie Morrison

I think (Louisville will) be a very similar team...the thing I like about the beginning of the season is it's like solving a puzzle while you're playing volleyball. It's a fun, unique, stressful opportunity for us to go play volleyball in that way. They could come out with a similar lineup, and all of a sudden things are slightly different than last year. But they have a lot of pieces that come back. I think it's something that we can be familiar with but, again, teams change.

-- Jamie Morrison on matching up with Louisville

Natalie Ring

I'm so excited. I think it's going to be only an hour show from where I'm from. And I played at Marquette, obviously in Milwaukee. So kind of going back to where I did undergrad is going to be super fun. I'm really excited to kind of show this team what Wisconsin's like and Milwaukee and place I spent so much time, so I'm excited for sure.

-- Natalie Ring on returning home

Eliza Sharp

Oh my gosh, we're so excited. I think we're all a little bit like, whoa, this is happening. It's coming faster than you expect, but I don't think it's really shaking us all that much. We know it's coming, but we're not worried. It's just a chance for us to go have some fun on a bigger stage and show the world what this group is.

-- Eliza Sharp on starting off the year on a big stage

Kirra Musgrove

I think last year it was really cool to open up with it. It was a different experience, no one really knew what to expect. But I think this year we all kind of have an idea of what it's going to be like. And I think it's really cool to open it up and really start the season off strong.

-- Kirra Musgrove on going back to the AVCA First Serve