Aggies upset Louisville, move to Elite Eight

It has been 364 days since Texas A&M played a Sweet 16 match but unlike last year, the Aggies advanced to the regional finals for the first time since 2001 pulling a reverse sweep over Louisville.

The front row led the way for the Aggies and outside hitter Logan Lednicky was three stops shy of a triple-double with 20 kills, 12 digs and seven blocks. Kyndal Stowers had a double-double with 17 kills and 11 digs. Cos-Okpalla was shy of a double-double, tallying nine kills and 12 blocks on the night.

A&M (26-4, 14-1 SEC) started strong offensively, hitting .353 then .235 in the first two sets. It made it into the red zone but Louisville went to big hitters Cara Cresse and Payton Peterson to snatch the sets away from the Aggies. Louisville’s 8-0 run to win the second set put it in position to sweep the Aggies.

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But A&M takes pride in its grit and battled in the third set with 15 ties.

A&M found the red zone first thanks to a Louisville service error and a 2-1 run put A&M ahead 22-20. Coming out of the Louisville timeout, the Cardinals went on a 3-1 run to tie it at 23. A&M found Stowers for back-to-back kills and the set win.

With the offense humming, Cos-Okpalla woke up and took control in set four. A&M jumped to an early lead. Cos-Okpalla and Co. combined for four blocks on a 6-0 run to take the 17-8 lead; they had six blocks over the first three sets in total.

Louisville made late-set pushes, but A&M’s service pressure and two straight Stowers kills, forced the fifth set. 

In a fight to keep their seasons alive, the Aggies and Cardinals’ decisive set had nine ties.

A&M had a small 11-10 lead leading into a rally without a libero or defensive specialist on the court. Eight Aggies digs and a Morgan Perkins block later, A&M took control, 12-10. After a Louisville kill, Perkins followed up with a shot of her own for the 13-11 hold.  

Louisville went to Peterson once more to cut the deficit to one. But A&M had great success hitting off Louisville hands late in the match and kills from Hellmuth and Stowers sent the Aggies to the regional finals.

A&M will play Sunday against the winner of No. 1 Nebraska and No. 4 Kansas.

Here are highlights of Texas A&M’s regional semifinal game against Louisville: 

2025 NCAA Tournament, Nebraska Regional

FINAL: TEXAS A&M 3, LOUISVILLE 2

Set 5: Texas A&M 15, Louisville 12

Louisville again goes with the bigs and Lednicky is blocked to cut the deficit to one. Perkins takes advantage of a free ball to return to a two-point lead. Peterson takes the angle to cut to one. Hellmuth pushes through the block for match point and Stowers’ off-handed kill sends A&M to the regional final. 

Set 5: Texas A&M 12, Louisville 10

Texas A&M attacks the ball on a tight set, but the error ties it for the ninth time at 10. Lednicky fires a shot to the back corner to retake the lead. A&M did not have a defensive specialist or Libero on the court, and after at least four blocks and digs, Perkins’ block gets the Aggies the point. Louisville considered challenging a Lednicky lift at the net but do not because they have one left. Louisville calls a timeout. 

Set 5: Texas A&M 10, Louisville 9

After trading errors, Cos-Okpalla ties the match with a block. A&M retakes the lead after an out-of-system long ball from Louisville. Louisville takes a timeout. 

Set 5: Louisville 8, Texas A&M 7

A Lednicky service error ties the match at four. Louisville uses its bigs to challenge A&M’s offense and the Cardinals take the lead. But A&M retakes it after a Perkins kill out of the middle. Cresse gets the point on a long dig to go back in front. Stowers tools the block to tie the match. Cabello finds Cos-Okpalla’s hand on the throw down and Stowers ties the match for A&M. Chicoine gets the Louisville point for the 8-7 lead but A&M challenges that the ball landed in; the call is confirmed. 

Set 5: Texas A&M 4, Louisville 3

Louisville opens the fifth set with a high swing. Lednicky responds with a cross-court kill. Hellmuth gets the kill on a rally with two strong blocks from A&M. Chicoine fights through the double block of Lednicky and Cos-Okpalla to tie the match. Cos-Okpalla throws down a kill that popped up on a block deflection. Chicoine tools the block to tie the match. Blackshear’s shot goes long but Louisville challenges there was a touch; the call is confirmed. 

Set 4: Texas A&M 25, Louisville 18

Louisville’s defense challenges the Aggies who scramble, but fail to dig the ball. Perkins sends the ball back after a tight kill from Louisville. Stowers stuffs Sherman’s swing on the left side and two straight Stowers kills sends the Aggies to a fifth set.  

Set 4: Texas A&M 21, Louisville 17

Louisville tools the A&M block out of the timeout. Perkins out of the middle sends the Aggies into the red zone. Louisville goes on a 3-0 run and it ends with a Lednicky point from the back row. Louisville starts a 3-0 run thanks to Cresse’s offensive power at the net and service line. Morrison calls a timeout. 

Set 4: Texas A&M 19, Louisville 10

Louisville ends the 6-0 Aggies run with a kill from Blackshear. Texas A&M is called for a net violation. A bad Louisville set gives the Aggies another point and Hellmuth comes up with a block that ricochets off Cresse’s kill. Louisville calls another timeout. 

Set 4: Texas A&M 17, Louisville 8

Lednicky keeps going for her 17th kill and Peterson is blocked at the net. Louisville calls a timeout.

Set 4: Texas A&M 15, Louisville 8

After a 2-2 run, Cos-Okpalla blocks Louisville, stopping Chicoine on the left side. Applegate tries to dig a Chicoine kill but the ball goes flying into the stands. Stowers takes the angled kill. Lednicky meets the Louisville block to make it 11-8. Cos-Okpalla slams the ball into the middle on a close set. Cos-Okpalla has three straight blocks to hold onto the lead. 

Set 4: Texas A&M 7, Louisville 3

Texas A&M’s first point is a block from Cos-Okpalla. Lednicky wins a joust at the net to take an early lead. Peterson’s out-of-system swing goes wide. Louisville sets a ball short to the net and the attempt goes wide. Peterson’s kill ends a 3-0 Aggies run. Blackshear works through the defense for a point that falls in the front row, but Lednicky cannot be stopped going cross-court to hold a three-point lead. Lednicky follows it up with an ace.

Set 3: Texas A&M 25, Loisville 23

Stowers takes the angle to break the 15th tie of the set. Thomas serves then digs a return and finds Stowers, who softly touches the ball over to take the set. 

Set 3: Texas A&M 23, Louisville 23

Chicoine gets the touch on a long kill attempt out of the timeout. Waak sends an out-of-system ball over the net and a Chicoine swing ties the match. 

Set 3: Texas A&M 23, Louisville 21

Out of the Cardinal timeout, Peterson sends a shot into the stands. Hellmuth takes a swing and tools the Louisville block. Louisville calls another timeout after freshman Megan Fitch rotates into the match. 

Set 3: Texas A&M 22, Louisville 20

Cresse breaks the tie, but Lednicky re-knots it at 21. Hellmuth sends a powerful kill across the court and Louisville calls a timeout. 

Set 3: Texas A&M 20, Louisville 19

Perkins explodes out of the middle but Hellmuth serves the Aggies’ ninth service error. Stowers goes down the line to cut the deficit to one. Thomas serves an ace to tie the match and her free-hand dig finds Stowers to take the lead. Louisville ties the set for the 11th time, this time at 17, after Chicoine goes high on her swing. Cos-Okpalla uses a free ball to her advantage and finds the floor for an Aggies lead. A&M loses a joust and the match is tied at 18. The Aggies go to Cos-Okpalla again for another kill but a Stowers service error knots it at 19. A Louisville service error puts A&M in the red zone. 

Set 3: Louisville 15, Texas A&M 13

For the seventh time, this set is tied after an attack error goes awry. Hellmuth takes an aggressive swing on an out-of-system point. A Louisville service error ties the match for the ninth time at 13. Peterson and Chicoine start a 2-0 run to get to 15 first. 

Set 3: Texas A&M 11, Louisville 10

The Cards go on a 4-0 run but Waak has an aggressive throw down in the middle of the court. Lednicky’s kill ties the match at nine with a cross-court kill. Blackshear swings through the triple block but Cos-Okpalla throws down a kill in the middle. Louisville has no answer for the middle blocker at the net. Lednicky tags the line on an angled shot to retake the lead. 

Set 3: Texas A&M 6, Louisville 5

Cos-Okpalla blocks Chicoine to open the set. Stowers tries to go angle but the ball goes wide. The Aggies go on a 2-0 run but momentum is stopped by a Peterson kill through the block. The two teams trade service errors until Lednicky sends a rocket down the line. Louisville tried to send a free ball to Louisville but is stuffed at the net and another Louisville block stuffs Hellmuth to tie the match at five. Hellmuth goes cross-court to retake the lead. 

Set 2: Louisville 25, Texas A&M 22

Louisville finds Chicoine for two straight kills through the Aggies block. Blackshear’s kill is the exclamation point on an 8-0 run for Louisville as they take the second set. 

Set 2: Texas A&M 22, Louisville 22

Cardinals tool the block and get an ace that drops quickly in front of Underwood to tie the match at 22. A&M calls another timeout. 

Set 2: Texas A&M 22, Louisville 20

Hellmuth’s serve finds the net for the Aggies’ fifth service error of the night. But Stowers gets the point back by going down the line. The Cardinals go on a 3-0 run and force the Aggies to call a timeout as Louisville enters the red zone. 

Set 2: Texas A&M 21, Louisville 16

Louisville calls a timeout in the middle of a 4-0 Aggies run. But the fourth point goes to Louisville after challenging an Aggies net fault and the call is overturned. The teams trade four points until a Peterson kill cross-court kill. A&M goes on a 2-0 run and Louisville calls a timeout. The Cardinals call another timeout after a 2-1 run that puts the Aggies into the red zone. 

Set 2: Texas A&M 13, Louisville 12

Hellmuth leads a 3-0 run with two kills but A&M’s block didn’t chase an offspeed shot. Hellmuth’s kill and Perkins’ block starts a 2-0 run, but errors from A&M tie the match at 10. Sherman finds a kill for Louisville, but the Cards tie the match with a service error. The Aggies and Cards trade points and the lead until Cos-Okpalla taps the ball over. 

Set 2: Louisville 7, Texas A&M 6

Stowers attacks through the block of Louisville to open the set, but Louisville finds Blackshear and Peterson for quick points. Hellmuth is stuffed on the left side to give the Cardinals the lead and a corner-to-corner ace in a 4-0 run. Lednicky is hammering kills to keep the Aggies close. 

Set 1: Louisville 23, Texas A&M 21

After a 2-0 run, A&M ties it at 23. A Peterson kill makes it Louisville set point. A free ball to Louisville gives the Cards time to set up for the kill to take set one. 

Set 1: Louisville 21, Texas A&M 21

Louisville’s scoring run continues out of the timeout by stuffing Hellmuth. Its block is coming alive and has three so far in the set. The Cardinals step over the service line gifting A&M a small lead, but Chicione is hard to stop as she notches her fifth kill. Peterson’s kill gives Louisville the lead, but is short lived after a Lednicky offspeed.