KANSAS CITY, Missouri — No. 3 seed Texas A&M showed the “grit” it has displayed throughout the NCAA Division I women’s volleyball tournament in Sunday’s final, beating No. 1 seed Kentucky 3-0 to capture the program’s first national championship.

In the first all-SEC title-game showdown, the Aggies trailed by as many as six points in the first set and were down a set point. A kill by redshirt sophomore Kyndal Stowers tied the game at 24-24. A block by Ifenna Cos-Okpalla gave the Aggies a set point. And a Stowers kill sealed it.

The Aggies never trailed the rest of the way.

“As soon as we got within two, I was like, ‘Oh no’ for them,” Texas A&M coach Jamie Morrison said. “They should know better on this team. This team is not going to back down.”

The Aggies had a string of upsets just to make it to the title game, starting with a regional semifinal reverse sweep of No. 2 seed Louisville, followed by a regional final upset against previously undefeated No.1 Nebraska. Texas A&M continued its upset streak by sweeping No. 1 Pitt 3-0 in the semifinals before claiming the national title against Kentucky.

“I just said, ‘We’ve been here before. We’ve been there twice. I brought up the Louisville match,” Morrison said of his team’s first-set deficit. “We talked about Louisville being down 0-2. We talked about Nebraska. We said, ‘Hey, we’ve been here.’ … I just said, ‘It’s going to take one or two points, start to get firing, they’re going to be there.'”

PREVIOUS STORY: Texas A&M stuns unbeaten Nebraska Huskies to advance to final four in NCAA volleyball tournament

In the second set, the Aggies held a consistent lead over the Wildcats, finishing 25-15 after an attack error by Kentucky. Texas A&M held onto its lead in the third set and clinched the title when senior middle blocker Cos-Okpalla’s kill brought the score to 25-20.

After leading her team with 11 kills, Texas A&M senior Logan Lednicky fought back tears as she looked back at her four-year career in College Station. The 6-foot-3 opposite hitter credited the nine seniors on her team for helping build this program.

“I was pretty emotional all day today just knowing that no matter the outcome of this game, it would be my last getting to represent A&M on my chest,” Lednicky said. “Being able to do this with these girls, end with the trophy, end like this, I just can’t even believe it.”

Stowers, who had 10 kills in the title match, claimed the Most Outstanding Player award. The transfer from Baylor medically retired because of concussions before transferring to Texas A&M. Stowers had 17 kills against Louisville, 25 against Nebraska and 16 against Pitt.

“A year ago today, I sat on my couch and watched some good friends of mine actually win this game,” Stowers said of Penn State’s victory over Louisville. “Now, to be living that is genuinely surreal. It was a journey to get here. Good days; bad days. It took this guy, sitting next to me, Morrison, believing in me after not playing volleyball for over a year and a half, to take me on his roster and coach me every single day.”

Throughout the NCAA tournament, Texas A&M credited its “grit.” The Aggies were two points away from elimination in the regional semifinals against Louisville. Since that upset, the Aggies outscored their opponents 317-276.

“It’s a testament to the work we put in in the practice gym and just generally in all of our careers,” Lednicky said after the semifinals. “It’s been a long time coming for us, a lot of work put into this moment.”

Kentucky had won four matches in a row against Texas A&M, including a four-set victory Oct. 8. Wildcats coach Craig Skinner pointed to A&M’s passing as the difference.

“They handled our serve really well early,” Skinner said. “Our serving pressure didn’t allow them to get in sync when we were down at College Station. Today, they were in sync.

“Credit their first contact with their passers of Underwood, Applegate, Hellmuth, and Stowers for really doing a good job of providing Waak opportunities to set their whole offense. It was a difficult thing to try and score points on defense.”

The Montgomery area produced two state runners-up in Class 4 and 5A in 2025 in Prattville Christian Academy and Montgomery Catholic respectively.

PCA senior Baylee Rogers highlights the Montgomery Advertiser’s All-Metro teams, being named the player of the year in a talented pool of players that saw various milestones met, and a few school records broken.

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – A 2-year-old girl waiting for a heart transplant after being diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy got to meet her volleyball-playing namesake.

At Children’s Nebraska, Merritt Squire is being treated for her condition, which causes the heart’s main pump chamber to be enlarged and weakened.

Named after former Nebraska volleyball and current Omaha Supernovas player Merritt Beason, when she heard of little Merritt, big Merritt wanted to meet her.

“The visit became a moment of pure joy for the family. “These are the things that really ground you, and almost humble you in a way, to remember that little girls and kids are out here fighting for their lives every single day,” Beason said.

“To have a little girl sharing the same name as you, who is so strong and fighting every single day, is just something you can’t put into words,’” per the post on Children’s Nebraska’s website.

Merritt has received a Berlin Heart, a mechanical pump to help circulate blood, while she waits for a heart donor.

“We support not only the patient but also the family as best as we possibly can through that process,” said Dr. Jason Cole, medical director of the Advanced Pediatric Heart Failure & Transplant program. “Opportunities like these give our families a chance to take a step back, take a breath and to enjoy the moments while they’re here.”

Copyright 2025 WOWT. All rights reserved.

MILWAUKEE – On Monday, Susie Johnson announced the addition of transfer Kameron Stover to the roster for the upcoming volleyball season.
 
Stover will join the Panthers this spring after an impressive freshman campaign at Walsh University in North Canton, Ohio.
 
“We are so excited to add Kami to our program this spring,” commented Johnson. “She has a ton of athleticism and competitiveness and has proved that she can compete day after day, which is what we have been looking to add to our program.” 
 
Stover was a force for the Cavaliers in 2025, finishing the season 16th among all Division II players in total kills with 452. That mark ranked third among all freshmen at the Division II level and also led all players from the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
 
In addition to her kill total, Stover led the GMAC in kills per set (4.30) and total points (507), while also pacing the league in points per set (4.83). She finished 10th in the league in service aces (30), and 14th in digs (299). Stover also recorded 33 kills in a match, the most by any GMAC player since the 2022 campaign.
 
Following her freshman season with the Cavaliers, Stover was selected as the conference’s Freshman of the Year and earned First Team All-Conference honors. She was also named the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Midwest Region Freshman of the Year and later added Division II Conference Commissioners Association Second Team All-Region accolades.
 
Stover played at Marengo Highland High School in Ohio from 2021-24, where she amassed 1,770 career kills, the ninth-most in recorded state history. As a junior, she tallied 636 kills, the seventh-most in state history, and followed that up with another 567 as a senior. Her 48 kills in a match against Plain City Jonathan Alder as a junior ranked third all-time for a single match in Ohio.
 
She was a two-time First Team All-State selection and earned Third Team honors as a sophomore. A three-time First Team All-District and All-Conference selection, Stover also earned All-Region accolades from this AVCA as a senior and is the program’s kills record holder for career, single-season, and single-match.
 
Stover joins incoming freshmen Olivia Doerre, Emma Dufft, Kayla Landerud, and Hope Wagner, who announced their commitments to Milwaukee in mid-November.
 

Opposite hitter Loryn Helgesen (Utah State), libero Sierra Grizzle (Texas Tech), and setter Izzy Mogridge (Tennessee) will join freshman outside hitter Suttyn Harris who signed in November.

“We are incredibly excited about adding Sierra, Loryn and Izzy to our team for the upcoming 2026 season,” said D’Errico. “These three add to the qualities our team embodies that make this place so special. They will help us compete at a championship level daily and are all in on our culture of authenticity, consistency and connection. We hit a home run with this class in so many ways and couldn’t be more excited to get them in the gym this spring to start training with our returning core.”

Loryn Helgesen | 6-2 | Opposite | Kaysville, Utah | Utah State (Davis High)
“Loryn is incredibly gifted as a physical volleyball player with a huge upside and determination to be great in her career at the highest level,” said D’Errico. “We absolutely love that we get to keep a local talent of her caliber HOME and representing Utah on and off the court. She brings an energetic and fun presence that will fit right into our special group of humans from the start.”

Helgesen has two more seasons that she will spend with the Utes after starting her collegiate career two hours north at Utah State.

 

During her time with the Aggies, Helgesen was named an AVCA All-Region Honorable Mention (West Region), and All-Conference First Team in the Mountain West. Helgesen also broke a school record for hitting percentage over 20+ attempts, ranks 10^th all-time in Utah State history in hitting percentage with at least five attempts per set, and seventh all-time in career hitting percentage.

 

Utah’s new opposite was a two-sport athlete before coming to college, excelling in track as well as volleyball and breaking records in junior high and high school.

 

The daughter of Lindzi and Jack, Helgesen has three siblings, Alyssa, Hadlee, and Jack. Mom, dad, and uncle, Kurt are all Utah alums. Hadlee, played soccer at Shoreline Washington College.

 

When not on the volleyball court, Helgesen enjoys painting, cooking, and hanging out with friends.

 

Sierra Grizzle | 5-7| Libero | Meridian, Idaho | Texas Tech (Mountain View HS)

“Sierra is an elite defender who led the Big12 in digs per set and was also one of the best servers in the conference in 2025,” said D’Errico. “She adds competitive energy, toughness, and a winning mindset to our program. She is the kind of competitor whose play will elevate those around her. We are excited for the impact she will have for us in her final collegiate season.”

Grizzle comes to the Utes after gaining experience as a freshman with the Wyoming Cowboys where she was a two-time Freshman of the Week and three-time Mountain West Defensive Player of the Week before transferring to Big 12 foe Texas Tech for her sophomore and junior years.

During her time with the Red Raiders, Grizzle was a two-time Defensive Player of the Week (Sep. 2 and 30 of 2025), ranked first in the Big 12 (20^th nationally) in digs per set (4.82) and fourth in aces per set (.39). Additionally, Grizzle will bring 1356 career digs and 115 career aces to Salt Lake City.

As a high school prospect, Grizzle was recognized by the AVCA on their Under Armour Phenom Top 300 list, and their All-American Watch List. Additionally, the right-handed libero was a three-time all-conference and all-state selection, the Gatorade Idaho Player of the Year, and was named to Mountain View High School’s Hall of Fame.

She is the daughter of Valerie and Randall Grizzle and has one younger brother, Troy. Mother played basketball at Boise State, father played football at Montana State, and brother currently plays football for Boise State.

Grizzle enjoys snowboarding, biking, fishing, camping and food outside of volleyball.

 

Izzy Mogridge | 5-11 | Setter | Lutz, FL | Tennessee (Berkeley Preparatory School)

“Izzy is an elite athlete with a huge upside at the setting position,” said D’Errico. “She is a great competitor and teammate who has shown she can compete at the highest levels of the game through USA NTDP experiences and the Under Armour All-American game. She brings such joy and passion to the court that we feel fits perfectly with our programs culture.”

With one season at Tennessee under her belt, Mogridge comes to the Utes as a sophomore after playing 17 matches for the Volunteers with one start. She also had a stint last summer with the U.S. U19 National Team.

The four-year letter winner was a three-time Player of the Year and was one of 26 prep standouts chosen to play in the Under Armour All-American Game last January. In high school Mogridge helped lead Berkeley Prep to a runner-up finish in the 3A Florida Championships.

She is the daughter of Jennifer and Allen Mogridge and has two sisters, Liv and Lola. Father is the offensive line coach at Georgia Tech and sister Liv played volleyball for the Yellow Jackets and will finish her career at Iowa this upcoming season.

Mogridge enjoys making jewelry, collecting vinyl records, and listening to music when she is not on the volleyball court.

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