KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Pittsburgh volleyball coach Dan Fisher said he’s to blame after the Panthers lost in the NCAA tournament semifinals for a record fifth straight season Thursday night.

Top-seeded Pitt was swept by No. 3 Texas A&M 29-27, 25-21, 25-20 and failed to advance to the program’s first national championship game.

The Aggies finished the three sets with a .382 hitting percentage and 52 kills; the Panthers hit .344 with 45 kills.

In Sunday’s championship match, Texas A&M will face Kentucky, a five-set winner over Wisconsin in the other semifinal.

“I guess the main story from a coaching standpoint is, we hit for a high-enough percentage, that’s for sure,” said Fisher, the 13th-year Panthers coach. “If you would have told me we would hit .350, I would have been pretty pleased with that.

“We were nowhere near as good as we needed to be defensively. … I thought we were ready. It’s on me and on us as coaches. We just weren’t good enough defensively.”

Pitt was eliminated in the national semifinals by Nebraska in 2021 and 2023, and by Louisville in 2022 and 2024.

“I’m proud of being consistently good and consistently in the hunt. But I’m pretty pissed off about it right now,” Fisher said.

On Thursday, Pitt junior and 2024 American Volleyball Coaches Association National Player of the Year Olivia Babcock had a game-high 22 kills. The 6-foot-4 right-side hitter, who is a finalist for the prestigious award again, fought back tears after the loss.

“Obviously, losing sucks, but I don’t think there’s anything shameful or bad about losing in a final four,” Babcock said. “I mean only four teams got to play today. We were grateful enough to be one of them. Losing is always hard.”

She echoed Fisher’s comments on the defensive play.

“Offensively, we were great the entire night,” she said. “Normally, we’re better at getting block touches and we are making more digs. Today, I feel that we just weren’t up to our standard.”

Pitt beat Purdue in the regional finals to become the first team since Texas (2012-16) to make five straight final four appearances. The Longhorns won the national championship in 2012 and were the runners-up in 2015 and 2016.

MANHATTAN, Kan. – The best high school track and field athletes from the state of Kansas and surrounding states will descend on Manhattan this spring as Head Track and Field Coach Travis Geopfert and Athletics Director Gene Taylor have announced details for the inaugural K-State Relays at the R.V. Christian Track Complex.
 
The meet, which will be held April 10-11, will consist of six different relay events as well as seven field events and will infuse the Manhattan community with visitors from all over the state. The unique format will score the relay events and will crown both a boys and girls team champion.
 
“We are thrilled to host this event and help support high school track and field here in the state of Kansas,” Geopfert said. “This will be a high school-only meet that will allow every school in the state of Kansas to come to Manhattan and have their athletes compete against the best that this state, and surrounding states, have to offer.”

The relay events include the 4×100, 4×400, 4×800, sprint medley relay, distance medley relay and shuttle hurdle relay. The field events to be contested are the long jump, triple jump, shot put, discus throw and javelin throw with a field size of 32 athletes. The high jump and pole vault will have up to 24 participating athletes. The Cliff Rovelto Indoor Track will be utilized as a warm-up area while Bramlage Coliseum will house the team camps. The close proximity of these three facilities will make for a seamless experience for athletes and coaches.

 

“We wanted to create a unique team concept, with team-scored relays only on the track,” Geopfert added. “This allows hundreds of athletes to compete as a team in a condensed time frame that’s exciting for all track and field fans. We also wanted to make sure we created an opportunity for the best field event athletes in the state to compete. This is a slightly different concept from the traditional ‘Relays Meet’ but we’re hopeful the team score, the condensed schedule and the opportunity for elite field event competition, will attract and give a great opportunity for these high school athletes.”

 

Events such as the K-State Relays also provide the department with the opportunity to host visitors to not only see the Wildcat program and facilities up close but also spend time in the Manhattan community.

“When we look at hosting outside events, we want to ensure that they provide value to our department and programs, make sense from a cost/revenue perspective and are beneficial to the Manhattan community,” Taylor said. “We feel this event checks all the boxes, and we look forward to welcoming high school track athletes and their families to Manhattan in April.”

 

More information, including detailed schedules and ticket information, will be announced in the coming months. High school coaches and teams interested in participating in the event can contact Chris Goodwin at (785) 473-6661 or cgoodwin@kstatesports.com.

 

 

— k-statesports.com —

 
How to follow the ‘Cats: For complete information on the K-State Track and Field and Cross Country Teams, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team’s social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WMTV) – The Badgers Volleyball team lost to Kentucky Thursday night and failed to advance to the National Championship game on Sunday.

Wisconsin lost to the Wildcats 3-2 in Kansas City.

Kentucky will play Texas A&M on Sunday afternoon for the National Championship.

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Copyright 2025 WMTV. All rights reserved.

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – Athletic Director Troy Dannen reflected on another year of Nebraska Athletics, sharing highlights and achievements of the men’s and women’s sports teams and hinting at what’s to come.

In competition, Huskers excelled in multiple sports:

• Nebraska volleyball team just completed a remarkable 33-1 season
• Wrestling finished as the national runner-up as a team and two Husker wrestlers won individual national championships
• Softball made an NCAA Super Regional appearance
• Football earned a second straight bowl berth
• Both basketball teams are undefeated and ranked in the AP Top 25.

This year, student-athletes set a school record with a 3.464 GPA, led the Big Ten Conference with 117 fall Academic All-Conference selections and once again posted a Graduation Success Rate over 90%, among the best in the nation. Dannen said they also made a positive impact in Lincoln and surrounding communities through their volunteer work.

Alcohol and food sales at Husker venues

The start of alcohol sales at all on-campus venues and the addition of new food options resulted in an increase of 75% in total concession revenue compared to last year, Dannen said.

“More than 313,000 alcoholic beverages were served and new food options were added to the menu, resulting in an increase of 75% in total concession revenue compared to last year,” Dannen said.

The introduction of alcohol sales came with concerns about the impact on fan behavior, but Dannen said it remained consistent with the previous five years.

John Cook Arena reseating

The John Cook Arena reseating process planned for 2026 has drawn criticism from longtime season ticket holders.

Dannen said the athletic staff has developed a plan that ensures that season-ticket holders in 2025 will be guaranteed season-tickets next year.

Dannen said 10% of current season-ticket holders did not use their tickets this year but rather sold those tickets through secondary markets. Those tickets, originally purchased for a total of $600,000 by those ticket holders, were then resold for a total of $3.2 million on the secondary market. Ticket use for this purpose is strictly prohibited.

The accounts that resold the entirety of their tickets will be excluded from the ability to purchase season-tickets in 2026, Dannen said.

1890 Nebraska winding down operations

With the implementation of the House settlement, 1890 Nebraska, Husker Athletics’ NIL collective, has begun winding down its operations.

“Hundreds of Husker fans donated millions of dollars over the past 24 months to support NIL for our student-athletes, as the rules at the time permitted,” Dannen said the in the letter.

The House settlement now prohibits much of what 1890 Nebraska provided, but in turn allows the university to share $20.5 million directly with student-athletes as they pay to license their NIL rights.

The five sports primarily supported by the collective include the Nebraska wrestling team, football team, two basketball teams and the volleyball team.

Facility upgrades

Several Nebraska athletic facilities saw enhancements including the completion of the track and field complex, along with new facilities for golf, rifle, swimming and diving and bowling.

In 2026, the athletics department is planning to renovate the softball and baseball clubhouses. Dannen said they are also looking forward to expanding the Devaney Center.

Entertainment

Three shows have been scheduled to take place inside Memorial Stadium next year. Zach Bryan will perform on April 25, the Savannah Bananas on June 13 and The Boys from Oklahoma on Aug. 22.

“Our plan is to continue to utilize our facilities for outside events to bring new events to our spaces and to help drive entertainment options in Lincoln,” Dannen said.

Due to anticipated construction, Nebraska Athletics will hold off on booking events for Memorial Stadium in 2027.

The athletics department is expecting to make two “big announcements on the Husker women’s sports front” early next year that will have a tremendous impact on its female student-athletes.

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Copyright 2025 KOLN. All rights reserved.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kentucky had all the laughs – or at least almost all of them.

“I’m glad I get to do it almost in my home state,” said Kentucky’s Brooklyn DeLeye, who is from Topeka, Kansas. “I know we’re in Kansas City, Missouri, but who even looks at that.”

Wisconsin had all the heartbreak. One could hear the emotion in Charlie Fuerbringer’s voice in the press conference as she talked about playing with Mimi Colyer being “so fun.” The joy that usually comes with the band’s post-match rendition of “Varsity” was hollow considering the team already left the court.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — As she has been known to do lately during this unbelievable run by the Texas A&M volleyball team, All-America hitter Logan Lednicky lifted 5-foot-7 teammate Ava Underwood Thursday night and hoisted her in the air.

“We’re going to the national championship!” she told Underwood.

“I know,” Underwood replied.

The Aggies survived another marathon postseason set and knocked off No. 1 seed Pittsburgh 29-27, 25-21, 25-20 in the NCAA volleyball tournament’s final four at T-Mobile Center. The win set up an SEC showdown against Kentucky in Sunday’s championship match.

A week ago, Texas A&M was teetering on the brink of elimination and pulled off a reverse sweep of second-seeded Louisville in the Sweet 16. The Aggies followed that up by ending Nebraska’s undefeated season in a five-set nailbiter on Sunday in Lincoln that included a 37-35 fourth-set setback. Lednicky called the Aggies the “grittiest team in volleyball” after that one. The label was tough to dispute Thursday, when they calmly withstood an 8-0 run in the second game against Pitt.

The Aggies have become fan favorites during the NCAA tournament, a sort of Cinderella story, a seemingly overachieving team that got hot at the perfect time and is riding a wave of momentum. But coach Jamie Morrison bristles at the idea that his team has arrived at the title game because of something as fleeting and flukey as momentum.

He says it’s by design.

“I think volleyball is a game of momentum if — this isn’t a sound bite — you have a weak mind,” Morrison said Thursday night. “The thing I talk a lot about in our program is I care less about mistakes and I care more about responses.

“We talk a lot about mental strength and mental fortitude, and the skills that go into that … We started this season talking about who you are as a human being, then in the middle of the season we talked about who you are as a competitor. When you get in these big moments, you get sways of four points, then it’s a game of momentum because you start losing track of who you are.”

The most relevant theme for the Aggies’ success is where they’ve been.

Four seniors — Lednicky, Underwood, Ifenna Cos-Okpalla and Lexi Guinn — went 5-13 in SEC play as freshmen in 2022. Lednicky and Underwood were A&M legacies who dreamed of wearing the maroon and gold, and turning A&M into a volleyball powerhouse. It wasn’t until 2023 when that dream came into focus. When Morrison arrived.

“When he took the job,” Underwood said, “it was not a question in my mind that I was going to stay. I knew that he was the guy that could make this place a great place for volleyball and just for people to go to, and that was something that I wanted to be a part of. It didn’t take much convincing for me.”

“He’s got a lot of buzzwords, but I think the biggest thing is just be yourself. He’s not going to make a bunch of copies of the same type of competitor. He really embraces all of us for the differences that we have, and I think that’s what makes our team so special.”

By 2024, Morrison had the Aggies in the Sweet 16. They ran into second-seeded Wisconsin and lost in five sets, coming within two points of victory. Morrison, who on Thursday was named the 2025 Division I AVCA coach of the year, said this year’s team is reaping the benefits of that experience. Underwood takes it a step further.

“To be honest, I think last year, losing in the tournament, that was the pivotal turning moment for us,” Underwood said.

A few weeks later, the Aggies added Kyndal Stowers to their roster. The sophomore had been medically retired at Baylor after suffering four concussions in a span of eight months. Stowers has been one of the Aggies’ most dominant players, and led the team with 16 kills and hit .433 on Thursday.

She has been a perfect fit. When Stowers smashed a kill to give the Aggies a 13-11 lead in the third game Thursday, she squinted and flashed a knowing smile to her teammates. Texas A&M had taken control.

“I think we just came together as a team,” Stowers said of their rally in the second game that set the tone for the match. “A very similar thing happened when we were playing Nebraska. We were up by quite a bit, and they went on a run. The fourth set, that went forever. We’re like, ‘Hey, we’re not doing that again.

“‘They’re going on a run right now, we’re going to recognize that, props to them for what they’re doing, but we’re going to respond and we’re not going to let that keep happening.'”

It was an uncharacteristically short postseason night for the Aggies. Cos-Okpalla smashed a ball that zipped through the Panthers’ defense in the third game, sealing the victory. After the ball landed and the crowd erupted, Cos-Okpalla casually sauntered back to the center of the court, joining her teammates, who were bouncing around in a circle.

The pro-A&M crowd held up big head cutouts of their favorite players, and Lednicky high-fived children and hoisted a few more teammates in the air.

Neither she, nor the rest of the Aggies, were surprised. They’d been building toward this.

“Honestly, I think [the postseason mentality] has been the same,” Lednicky said. “I know it’s probably like beating a dead horse, but y’all keep hearing, ‘Why not us?’ Literally why not us?

“We are considered the underdog in a lot of these moments just ’cause we haven’t been here before. But we know we have all the right pieces.

“So why not us?”