E-mail just received from Genny. Hope some of you will consider joining me in contributing to arguably our best and most consistent athletic program...
Greetings Rice Volleyball Community,
We hope this email finds you well and enjoying the holiday season! As we wind down the year, we want to update you on our first season in the American as we strive to elevate our status among the top volleyball programs in the NCAA. There is a lot to cover, so please read the full message!
Season Recap
The 2023 season was full of exciting competition and challenges that ultimately made us better and stronger as a program. We started out with some great wins in the non-conference, including sweeps of #24 USC and (RV) K-State, along with experiencing some incredibly tough competition vs. the likes of Pac 12 Champion Stanford and National Champion University of Texas, amongst others. This is the type of competition we thrive upon and ultimately know will provide us with incredibly valuable opportunities for growth and improvement. We never shy away from competing against the best in the country!
Our first season in the American Athletic Conference was full of exciting matches and brought back old rivalries from the past. We finished the season with a 12-6 AAC record and overall were 18-11. Although a conference championship was not the end result, our team competed well and hard throughout the season, with players stepping up in new roles and fighting to end some tough 5-set battles. here are some highlights:
Finished 61st in the final NCAA RPI (2nd best in the AAC)
Ranked #1 in the NCAA in Digs Per Set
Libero Nia McCardell ranked #26 in the NCAA Digs Per Set
Nia McCardell reached the 1500 Dig Milestone
Seven Conference Player of the Week Honors: Emilia Weske, Nia McCardell, Darby Harris, Danyle Courtley, Kaitlyn Knobbe, Satasha Kostelecky, and Sahara Maruska all received recognition throughout the season.
Three AAC Honorees: Danyle Courtley and Emilia Weske (1st Team); Nia McCardell (2nd Team)
Two All-South Region Honorees: Emilia Weske and Danyle Courtley
Four Academic All-District (Honorees): Emilia Weske, Danyle Courtley, Darby Harris and Kaitlyn Knobbe.
Head Coach Genny Volpe was inducted into the Rice Athletics Hall of Fame (Congrats from all of Rice Athletics!)
Lastly Senior Nia McCardell announced she is going to stay and compete her COVID 5th year again here at Rice! We are excited to have Nia compete one more season for the Owls, and watch her continue to break records and help the team reach new heights!
Locker Room Project
We have experienced great success on the court recently, earning NCAA Tournament berths in five of the last six years while amassing a record of 132-38. As we've experienced this success, we've been fortunate to have many supporters come alongside us to elevate our program off the court. We've significantly upgraded our facilities to be among the best in the NCAA Volleyball: our student-athletes now enjoy the Cunningham Family Volleyball Lounge and practice on Trauber Court, a Taraflex Sport M+ floor. We've also provided our team with life-changing experiences, taking training and educational trips to Italy (2019) and Brazil (2023). None of this would have been possible without your support!
As we seek to continue our program's growth, we now embark on a project to upgrade our locker room, a two-phase project. Phase 1 of the project, which will take place next semester, will see the lockers in our current locker room upgraded to be best-in-class. Phase 2 of the project, and much more significant undertaking, will see our locker room expanded and better situated to tie together our training and competition spaces. We are currently working with an architect to determine options for this phase.
To make Phase 1 a reality, we need to raise $65,000, and we are asking for the support of the Rice Volleyball community to help. Locker naming opportunities start at $4,000, which will memorialize your place in the current success of Rice Volleyball. Please click the link below to support our efforts. If you would like to visit further, I would be happy to have a call with you or feel free to reach out to our Sport Administrator, Tanner Gardner (tgardner@rice.edu).
Donate here:
https://riceconnect.rice.edu/volleyball?...32fbde01cd
(enter Locker Room Project in Special Instructions)
We expect to continue performing at a Top 25 level and strive to regularly be among the Top 16. Thank you for your support in this journey. And as always...
Go Owls!!!
Genny Volpe
Head Volleyball coach
Rice University
NCAA Tournament
2004, 2008, 2009, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022
See our program up close!
https://riceathletics.exposure.co/rice-volleyball
