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No. 8 Texas A&M Falls to No. 7 Louisville at AVCA First Serve, 3-1No. 8 Texas A&M Falls to No. 7 Louisville at AVCA First Serve, 3-1
Volleyball

No. 8 Texas A&M Falls to No. 7 Louisville at AVCA First Serve, 3-1

Postgame Photos
Box Score
  • Three Aggies tallied double-digit kills in the opener with Natalie Ring leading the way with 11.
  • Gabi Rodriguez recorded a team-best 18 digs in her first collegiate match, the most by a freshman since 2022.
  • The Aggies return to action Sunday, Aug. 23 for a 12 p.m. showdown with No. 11 SMU. 

MILWAUKEE, Wisc. – The No. 8 Texas A&M volleyball team was unable to get by No. 7 Louisville, falling 3-1 (20-25, 23-25, 25-20, 21-25) in its season opener at the Jeep AVCA First Serve at the Fiserv Forum Friday evening.

Natalie Ring led three Aggies with double-digit kills, tallying 11 in her debut with the Maroon & White. Taryn Morris registered a career-high 10 kills, while Eliza Sharp added 10 kills and a team-best six blocks. Gabi Rodriguez also impressed in her first collegiate match finishing with 18 digs.

The Aggies defended their early lead despite Louisville tying things on six occasions before taking its first advantage at 16-15. Texas A&M continued to fight, but the Cardinals used a 14-6 run to close out the opening set, 25-20.

Play remained tight in the second set as Louisville led for much of the way, but the Maroon & White used a steady push to take the advantage back late. The two teams traded points in the closing moments and it was Louisville that was able to claim the final two points and take a 2-0 lead in the match.

Texas A&M didn’t back down, putting on a dominant performance in set three. The Aggies jumped out to an early five-point lead and never trailed in the set as they cruised to a 25-20 win to stay alive.

Back-and-forth play returned in the final set as neither team led by more than two points before the media timeout midway through. Three straight points gave the Cardinals a 20-17 advantage and forced a Texas A&M timeout. The Aggies kept it close, but Louisville scored five of the last eight points in the set to seal the match, 25-21.

STAT LEADERS

Kills – Natalie Ring – 11

Hitting Percentage (Min. 10 kills) – Eliza Sharp – .333

Assists – Lily Nicholson – 23

Aces – Gabi Rodriguez – 2

Digs – Gabi Rodriguez – 18

Blocks – Eliza Sharp – 6

GAME NOTES

Next Up

The Aggies return to action at Fiserv Forum Sunday, Aug. 23, when they take on No. 11 SMU at 12 p.m.

Postgame Press Conference

First off, congratulations to Louisville. They're a great team. They're experienced, they're well coached, and I thought that showed tonight. And what I talked to my team about just now in the locker room is I'm simultaneously sad--I'm competitive, I want to win--but I'm encouraged with what the potential of this team is. We've talked the entire time that it's a race to the end of the season. It's not the beginning. Now we have 14 weeks to improve for the NCAA tournament to make a run similar to what we did last year. So it was a good first step. And in terms of the things that we talked about doing before the match and the team that we wanted to be, I thought we lived up to that.

-- Jamie Morrison