Texas A&M volleyball fans Paul and Shawna Ricks had a weekend to remember.
The first leg of their family trip took them from their home in Colorado Springs, Colorado, to College Station for A&M football’s game against Samford at Kyle Field. Then, it was off to Enmarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia, to watch the Aggies in the Allstate Southeastern Conference Volleyball Tournament.
“We follow the girls on the volleyball team,” Shawna said before A&M’s semifinal matchup against Texas. “We love them all. We’re so proud of how great they’ve done this season, and we just want to celebrate them.”
Though A&M fell short in the semifinals, the opportunity to see the Aggies play live was cherished by one member of the Ricks family especially — 14-year-old Brooklyn Ricks, a high school volleyball player herself. She was especially excited for the opportunity to see A&M senior opposite hitter Logan Lednicky.
“It ended up being more than we could ever ask for,” Paul said. “She asked Logan, when she stopped by, ‘What would you give [as] advice?’ And Logan took the time to talk to her about what to do, how to stay focused. So as a parent, it was really cool.”
The Ricks’ daughter wasn’t the only young volleyball player looking up to the stars of the show. Of the fans in attendance, plenty sported shirts supporting local — or non-local — volleyball clubs and plenty of players from several teams spent time in the crowd taking pictures and signing autographs with fans before and after their matches.
Kentucky volleyball and Texas face off in the SEC Volleyball Tournament final at Enmarket Arena in Savannah Georgia on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Ian Curtis/The Battalion)
But as the dust settled with the 1-seed Kentucky Wildcats taking home the tournament title, the SEC’s revival of its volleyball tournament — played for the first time in 20 years after being axed in 2005 — sparked significant questions.
Namely, is the tournament good for the SEC — and is it good for the sport of volleyball — in the same way it was good for fans like the Ricks family?
A divided postseason
Unlike most non-football NCAA-sponsored team sports, women’s volleyball’s postseason is divided.
Of the 31 conferences that sponsor Division I women’s volleyball, 27 of them hold some sort of postseason tournament to decide their automatic qualifier for the NCAA Tournament. Most of these mid-major events are held on campus sites and only invite the top teams from the conference. The Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten and Big 12 all do not have a conference tournament.
Volleyball, on a power conference level, doesn’t have the neutral-site, big-event feel that men’s and women’s basketball and diamond sports tournaments deliver in the postseason. The SEC wants to change that with all 16 of its teams.
“We want this tournament to evolve into the premier volleyball event nationally, something fans look forward to every year,” SEC Assistant Commissioner for Competition and Student-Athlete Engagement Misty Brown said via email before the tournament. “ … Over time, we envision this growing into a must-see postseason showcase that expands our brand, attracts new fans to the sport, and becomes another signature championship in the SEC.”
Brown, a Savannah native, said she was excited to bring an SEC Championship event to a partner city like Savannah with a three-year deal and stressed the importance of fan engagement.
One person in particular was excited to help with that last point — on the mic.
A growing game
When the SEC reached out to DJ Jay Shalé, the international emcee, artist and performer jumped at the chance to work the event.
The crowd — 3,880 at the tournament final between Texas and Kentucky — may not have compared to the crowds at Atlanta Falcons and Atlanta Hawks games she’s worked, along with her own tours, but the tournament held a special significance to her.
An artist paints a picture during the SEC Volleyball Tournament final at Enmarket Arena in Savannah Georgia on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Ian Curtis/The Battalion)
A former collegiate athlete herself — Shalé bowled at Texas Southern — the Germany native described herself as a huge women’s sports fan and was excited to play her own small role in the sport’s growth.
“Volleyball is the next major sport stateside,” Shalé said. “And to be a part of the early wave of all that getting picked up, I think is incredibly awesome. Like I said, all the women are incredibly talented, and they deserve a platform like this.”
From her stand next to the crowd, 20 or so yards from the baseline of the court, Shalé kept a wide variety of spectators — neutral fans, folks cheering for eliminated teams, kids there to see high-level volleyball like the Ricks’ daughter Brooklyn and, of course, a healthy dose of Kentucky’s Big Blue Nation — entertained throughout every single match through songs, mini-games and plenty of interaction with the crowd.
“I felt like there wasn’t really any expectation, because they haven’t been here in 20 years, so it was very important for me to set that bar high,” Shalé said. “So that way, people know like, ‘Next year, what are the dates? You need to come.’ … It was just important for me to be like ‘Okay, let me make sure I’m doing my part and making sure that people had a great time over these five days, and are inclined to want to come back when it comes back for future years.”
And with Brown and the SEC pitching the event as the nation’s premier volleyball showcase, at times — it’s a 16-team tournament, after all — the environment did live up to the hype.
Take, for example, the tournament final. Kentucky rallied back to reverse sweep 3-seed Texas, 3-2, in an all-time classic of a title match. The crowd wouldn’t set the highest attendance mark for either team, but you wouldn’t know it from how loud chants of “Go Big Blue” and “Texas! Fight!” battled throughout the evening.
The Kentucky wildcats are introduced before the SEC Volleyball Tournament final against Texas at Enmarket Arena in Savannah Georgia on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Ian Curtis/The Battalion)
“It was a great environment, very competitive,” Kentucky junior libero Molly Tuozzo said. “There was a lot of fans who weren’t even from Kentucky, but I heard of a couple of families from all over the place that just came to support us, and we’re fun to watch. So I think it’s just a really cool environment, lots of little teams and little girls that look up to us.”
That’s easy to say if you’re the tournament champion. But other schools agreed.
Two narratives dominated this year’s SEC Tournament’s early stages: the rise of 15-seed Vanderbilt and 14-seed Ole Miss. After lackluster conference slates, each double-digit seed went on a run into the quarterfinals of the tournament, before losing to 2-seed A&M and 3-seed Texas.
And, even after losing the final to Kentucky in heartbreaking fashion, Texas coach Jerritt Elliott couldn’t help but acknowledge the impact he feels the tournament will have on volleyball itself.
“You’re starting to see the explosion of this,” Elliott said. “It’s the fastest-growing women’s sport in the country right now, and there’s a really good [return on ad spend] that’s happening on this. You’re starting to see really good TV ratings from it. … But this is kind of happening for these incredible women that are playing at the high level they’re playing.”
Future questions
While it’s clear that SEC coaches, players and fans largely view the tournament as a success, there is one elephant left in the room: How does the SEC fare in this year’s NCAA Tournament?
An SEC sign outside of Enmarket Arena in Savannah Georgia on Monday, Nov. 24, 2025.
Five SEC schools made the Big Dance, and the two top dogs, Kentucky and Texas, each earned No. 1 seeds.
The conference’s team closest to the bubble — 6-seed Missouri — lost its first matchup in Savannah, so there isn’t much to tell about how the SEC Tournament affects a team’s bubble chances.
But other questions remain. Does playing high-level competition just before Thanksgiving prepare a team better for the rest of the postseason, or does playing three matches in three days set up a team poorly for the NCAA Tournament?
A&M, despite its semifinal loss to Texas, seems to prefer the former.
“It’s only gonna get tougher from here,” Lednicky said after the loss to Texas. “I think we needed just that, honestly. We got pushed a little bit in [non-conference] against two really good teams. I think [the Texas match was] exactly what we needed heading into the postseason for the NCAA Tournament.”
So what are the other power conferences thinking?
“Big Ten coaches, at least in the past, have had very different opinions about a conference tournament,” Lincoln Journal-Star sports columnist Amie Just, who covers Nebraska volleyball, the sport’s powerhouse program, said. “I’m just curious to know whatever happens with the SEC, if that changes people’s opinions, or if it strengthens how they feel about potentially adding it to the Big Ten.”
As the SEC and coaches like Elliott stress the event’s television value, Just can’t help but point out that all matches — including the tournament final — were limited to the SEC Network and not a main ESPN channel.
Junior libero Molly Tuozzo prepares to serve in Kentucky volleyball’s SEC Volleyball Tournament semifinal matchup against Tennessee at Enmarket Arena in Savannah Georgia on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Ian Curtis/The Battalion)
“One of the things we talk about when we put up this hypothetical question of ‘What would it look like if the Big Ten had a conference tournament?” Just said. “One of the first things people point to is what the TV situation would look like. And now that we see what the SEC has for its tournament, I think it would be fair to say that some people are disappointed.”
But tucked away in a press conference room at Enmarket Arena in Savannah, with a title shirt on and a championship trophy on the table in front of him, Kentucky coach Craig Skinner said the answer is clear: The SEC Tournament is the future of collegiate volleyball.
“Ninety percent of the eyeballs of volleyball world were on this match tonight, and then probably thousands more that don’t really watch volleyball because of it,” Skinner said after the tournament final. “ … We played 18 matches, but it wasn’t a fair schedule between all the teams, so the only way to determine a true conference champion was to have a tournament. And it’s a grind. I mean, it’s tough. These guys are worn out, but we have 10 days before the NCAA Tournament. … Every conference in America, if they don’t have a tournament, is thinking about it now.”
Football has earned a rematch with Heart North opponent Grand View University for the right to compete in the NAIA National Championship Game while Basketball hosts Heart newcomer Missouri Baptist University in this week’s edition of the Raven Athletics Weekly Update.
NEXT WEEK
MONDAY, Dec. 8
Women’s Basketball at University of St. Mary – Leavenworth, Kan. – 6 p.m. WATCH | LIVE STATS
FRIDAY, Dec. 12
Track & Field at Bulldog Early Bird (Concordia University) – Seward, Neb.
SATURDAY, Dec. 13
(RV) Wrestling at Heart Duals (St. Ambrose) – Davenport, Iowa – 10 a.m.
(5) Football at (1) Grand View (NAIA FCS Semifinals) – Des Moines, Iowa – Noon WATCH | LISTEN | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
Women’s Basketball vs. Missouri Baptist – Ralph Nolan Gymnasium – 2 p.m. WATCH | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
Men’s Basketball vs. Missouri Baptist – Ralph Nolan Gymnasium – 4 p.m. WATCH | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
NEXT WEEK
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 17
Men’s Basketball vs. Mission University – Ralph Nolan Gymnasium – 7 p.m.
FRIDAY, Dec. 19
Women’s Basketball vs. Northwestern (Iowa) – Ralph Nolan Gymnasium – 7 p.m.
SATURDAY, Dec. 20
NAIA Football National Championship Game – Crowley ISD Stadium, Fort Work, Texas
Men’s Basketball vs. Dordt – Ralph Nolan Gymnasium – 2 p.m.
Women’s Basketball vs. (1) Dordt – Ralph Nolan Gymnasium 4 p.m.
LONG BEACH, Calif. — Long Beach State men’s volleyball added one of the most accomplished recruiting classes in the nation during the November signing window, welcoming five elite prospects who are widely regarded as the top recruiting class in the country. The Class of 2026 features international standouts, national team members, gold medalists, and multiple state champions in Joosep Kurik (Tallinn, Estonia), Lucas Helle (South Carolina), Ben Bayer (Menomonee Falls, Wis.), Owen Weekes (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada), and Logan Gray (Chandler, Ariz.).
“This Long Beach State men’s volleyball Class of 2026 is comprised of five world-class student-athletes,” said coach Nick MacRae. “We are excited to unite these young men and their families with our Long Beach family. They have immediately bought into our team standards and core values as we work toward maintaining sustainable success for years to come. All five of these young men bleed LB Black & Gold and truly embody our LB Grit.”
With size across the pins, elite ball control, high-level setting, and proven championship experience, the class immediately elevates the Beach across every position group while reinforcing the program’s national and international recruiting footprint.
“I am grateful to have recruited this Class of 2026 alongside Coach McKay Smith,” MacRae added. “Smith is an essential part of our LB family. With their commitment to high volleyball standards, high academic goals and being holistic young men, we are thrilled to announce this recruiting class.”
Kurik brings elite European club experience and international success to the Beach. The 6-8 outside hitter helped lead Chenois Genève Volley to the 2023 Swiss Supercup championship and was named Swiss League Youngster of the Year for the 2024–25 season. He is also a member of the Estonia U19 National Team.
Lucas Helle | S | 6-5 | South Carolina | Carolina Stars
Helle arrives with one of the most decorated prep résumés in the country. He is a four-time 5A South Carolina State Champion, a two-time 5A State Player of the Year, and both an AAU and JVA All-American. Helle also competes with the USA U19 National Team and plays club with Carolina Stars.
Ben Bayer | OH/L | 6-2 | Menomonee Falls, Wis. | Milwaukee Sting
A versatile outside hitter and libero, Bayer brings elite defensive ability and international championship experience. He helped lead the USA U19 National Team to gold at the 2025 Pan American Cup, earning Best Receiver of the Tournament honors. A multiple-time Open Division All-American and All-Tournament Team selection, Bayer is also a two-time First Team All-State selection, GMC Conference Player of the Year, and a 2025 State Champion.
Owen Weekes | OH/OPP | 6-8 | Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | University of Manitoba
Weekes joins the Beach as a collegiate transfer and accomplished international competitor. A member of the Canada U21 National Team, he earned silver medals at both the U21 NORCECA Championships and the U21 Pan American Cup. At the University of Manitoba, Weekes was named to the CanWest All-Rookie Team, U SPORTS All-Rookie Team, and earned the school’s All-Sport Rookie of the Year award.
Logan Gray | OH | 6-6 | Chandler, Ariz. | AZ Fear
Gray brings championship experience and national development exposure to Long Beach State. A three-time Arizona State Champion, he competes with AZ Fear and is a member of the USA NTDP program in both indoor and beach volleyball.
With national team experience spanning four countries, multiple gold and silver medalists, state champions, and some of the most decorated prep, club, and collegiate athletes in the country, Long Beach State’s Class of 2026 stands as one of the most complete recruiting groups in program history. The class combines immediate impact potential with long-term stability and development across every position group, positioning the Beach to contend at the highest level for years to come.
“They come to our family ready to unlock their volleyball potential by competing for national championships, performing on the world’s biggest international stages, and pursuing Olympic dreams,” MacRae said. “They bring a wealth of experience from both the USA and international volleyball pipelines, with many of them already competing in major moments.”
Together, this group continues the tradition of elite volleyball and championship expectations that define Long Beach State.
ORLANDO, Fla. – America’s Athletic Classic has been named as one of 17 stops on the inaugural USATF Tour coming next year, the USA Track & Field announced last week.
Professional events at the 116th Drake Relays will serve as the fifth event on the USATF Tour schedule on Saturday, April 25. Tour administration developed the schedule to maximize athlete performance and provide unique competition opportunities for various disciples in the World Athletics ranking system.
“We are excited and eager for another iteration of America’s Athletic Classic,” Franklin P. Johnson Drake Relays Director Blake Boldon said. “The best collegians in the country will have the chance to compete alongside the world’s premier athletes and continue the storied tradition of the Drake Relays.”
The Tour schedule will get underway on March 28 at The Ten in San Juan Capistrano, California and conclude with a double-header, the Ed Murphey Classic in Memphis, Tennessee and Sunset Tour in Los Angeles, California.
Other historic meets like Mt. SAC (April 18) and the Penn Relays (Apr. 25) also occupy positions on the Tour calendar.
As part of the collaboration, USATF will provide all costs associated with drug testing, technical delegates, sanctioning, and insurance. It will prioritize Tour meets when allocating travel funding for tiered athletes and supplement the costs of any additional disciplines to the program if needed. USATF will also support the meets with marketing and media coverage of everything from ticket sales to performance highlights. It also announced today that it will award $50,000 in prize money to the male and female athlete who earn the highest number of World Athletics performance points in their three highest scoring competitions during the series.
While most events will be broadcast live on USATF.tv, events with existing broadcast agreements will remain on those platforms. Ticket, broadcast, and entry information for all meets can be found here.
SALT LAKE CITY—Utah Volleyball head coach Beth Launiere announced her retirement Monday afternoon, bringing to a close her storied 36-year run as the leader of Utah’s volleyball program.
The program’s all-time winningest head coach (689-439), Launiere retires as the third-longest tenured head coach in the history of Utah Athletics behind only Greg Marsden, who led Utah’s gymnastics program for 40 years (1976-2015), and Don Reddish, head coach of Utah’s men’s swimming program for 37 years. Launiere also is the second-winningest head coach in department history behind Marsden (1,048-208-8).
“After 36 years as the head Volleyball coach at the University of Utah, I have made the difficult decision to announce my retirement,” Launiere said. “While it is not easy to walk away from a lifetime’s work, I am ready and excited to begin the next chapter of my life. Thank you to the hundreds of players whom I have had the privilege to coach, and the many assistant coaches, support staff and administrators who were my daily collaborators to build this program into what it is today. I will miss the daily interactions, but I know our relationships will last a lifetime. It has been an honor to represent one of the greatest universities in the country. I will forever love Utah and will always be a Ute!”
Launiere built Utah Volleyball from the ground up, beginning in 1990, as she turned Utah into a perennial top25 program. Under her watch, the Utes were ranked in the AVCA Coaches Top 25 poll 183 weeks, including twice achieving a program-record 45 consecutive weeks ranked, from 2000-2002 and again from 2019-2022.
“It is nearly impossible to put into words the impact Beth Launiere has made at the University of Utah,” said Utah Athletics Director Mark Harlan. “Her legacy as one of the greatest coaches in the history of Utah Athletics is well-established, and the number of student-athletes, coaches and staff she has influenced in such a positive way stands at the top of her lengthy list of accomplishments. The standard of excellence and winning culture that Beth has created and sustained here for nearly four decades cements her place in Utah Athletics history. She will be greatly missed, but her established standard and culture will carry forward. Please join me in saluting Beth Launiere on her incredible career.”
Launiere led Utah to 20 NCAA Tournament appearances, including back-to-back in her final two seasons.
The 2025 Utes showed grit and determination going 4-1 in their last five matches of the regular season to punch their ticket to dance, including two top25 wins over No. 23 BYU and No. 13 Kansas. In 2024, Utah earned a No. 4 seed and hosted the first and second rounds at the Jon M. Huntsman Center to cap a season in which it ranked No. 23 in the final AVCA poll.
The Utes made four Sweet 16 appearances under Launiere, in 2001, 2008, 2017 and 2019.
With Launiere leading the way, Utah earned six conference championships (2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2008, all in the Mountain West), and notched 20 of the 25 20-win seasons in program history—including a record 28 wins in 2006.
Under Launiere’s watch, 16 athletes earned 24 All-America honors including Kim Turner who was the first Utah Volleyball player to receive the honor in 2003 and is the only Utah Volleyball player with a jersey retired in the Huntsman Center rafters. Turner is joined by Dani Drews who was recognized all four years she suited up for the Utes (2018-21) and is the most decorated Utah Volleyball player in program history, and most recently Kamryn Gibadlo who earned the recognition during 2024’s NCAA Tournament run.
Launiere’s coaching tree is equally impressive, having identified some of the best and brightest up-and-coming talent in the collegiate volleyball world. Most notably, Arizona State’s JJ Van Niel and BYU’s Heather Olmstead served as assistant coaches on Launiere’s staffs over the years.
Van Niel has recently shot up the coaching ranks, being named the Big 12 Coach of the Year two seasons in a row (2024 and 2025) and the AVCA’s Pacific Region Coach of the Year (2024) while leading the Sun Devils to a record of 84-13 since taking over the program in 2022. Van Niel spent three seasons in Salt Lake City with Launiere from 2015-17, two as an assistant head coach and one as associate head coach.
Olmstead has made her own noise with the Cougars, leading BYU to a 279-55 record in 10 seasons at the helm, earning the 2018 AVCA National Coach of the Year, and holding the highest active winning percentage of any NCAA Division I women’s volleyball coach (min. three seasons) at .848.
Launiere leaves the Utes as a four-time AVCA West Region Coach of the Year (2001, 2006, 2008, 2019), a three-time Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year (2004, 2006, 2008), a Pac-12 Coach of the Year (2019) and a five-time Don Reddish Award winner (1998, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005).
FOLLOW THE UTES
For an inside look at the Utah Volleyball program, including tournament, roster and news updates, fans can follow the Utes on social media (Twitter: @UtahVolleyball | Instagram: @utahvolleyball).
DOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL MOBILE APP OF THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH TODAY – UTAH 360
Story by Joe Alberico, Blinn College Sports Information
Blinn Cross Country Head Coach Jesse Parker (Joe Alberico)
The Blinn College Athletics Department is excited to invite former Buccaneer track and field and cross country athletes and coaches to the first Blinn College TFXC Alumni Reunion.
Blinn men’s and women’s cross country head coach Jesse Parker will host former Bucs coaches and runners at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, inside the Multi-Purpose Room at the Kruse Center on the Blinn-Brenham Campus. Refreshments and entertainment will be provided.
The event will coincide with the Blinn women’s and men’s basketball doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. at the Kruse Center.
To RSVP, please visit www.blinn.edu/athletics-forms/xctf-rsvp.html. For more information, please contact Jesse Parker at jesse.parker@blinn.edu.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Blinn’s track and field programs were considered national powerhouses across all levels of collegiate athletics. The Buccaneers captured a combined 18 indoor and outdoor NJCAA men’s track and field national championships, winning nine consecutive titles in both indoor and outdoor competition between 1987 and 1995. Blinn also won back-to-back NJCAA men’s cross country national championships in 1993-94. Numerous Buccaneers also made appearances in the Olympic Games.
Blinn relaunched cross country in the fall of 2024, fielding both men’s and women’s programs. Since the relaunch, the Buccaneer men and women have made two appearances in the NJCAA Division I Men’s & Women’s Cross Country Championships and two appearances in the NJCAA Division I Men’s & Women’s Half Marathon Championships.
This Week’s Events Saturday, December 13
Women’s Basketball hosts Niagara – 2:00 p.m. {BUY TICKETS – all tickets $8.88} 80’s Weekend :: $1 Hot Dogs // KidZone // Postgame Layups on the Court (age 12 & younger) Sunday, December 14
Men’s Basketball hosts Oakland City – 2:00 p.m. {BUY TICKETS} 80’s Weekend :: $1 Hot Dogs // KidZone // Postgame Layups on the Court (age 12 & younger)
Viking of the Week Izabella Zingaro, Women’s Basketball
Averaged 17.5 points per game – shooting 83-percent from the floor on the week – while also averaging 7.0 rebounds per contest.
Women’s Basketball
-The Vikings return home for one game this week, hosting Niagara on Saturday.
-Saturday’s game will be played in Woodling Gymnasium, where the Vikings are 3-0 this season.
-Last time out, Cleveland State started Horizon League play, going 1-1 including a 72-55 victory at Oakland.
Men’s Basketball
-The Vikings will have a single game this week, hosting Oakland City on Sunday.
-Sunday’s game will mark the second inside Woodling Gymnasium for the Vikings, a place where they picked up a 109-56 victory over Waynesburg earlier this year.
-Last time out, Cleveland State started Horizon League play, with Jaidon Lipscomb averaging 19.0 points and the duo of Priest Ryan and Josiah Harris averaging 9.0 rebounds through the first two #HLMBB games.
Track & Field
-Cleveland State opened the 2025-26 indoor season with three school records.
-The Vikings are now off until the Falcon Early Bird Open on Friday, Jan. 9.
-Natalie Keller set the 5000 mark with a time of 17:54.57 at the YSU Open.
-Olivia Todd and Madison Morris followed it up with school records in the 300 at the Tom Wright Open.
