Red Raiders begin regular season this weekend
LUBBOCK, Texas – The Texas Tech volleyball team will begin its regular season in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts to play in a three-game slate as part of the Boston College Invitational. The Red Raiders will open their season on Friday against Eastern Kentucky at 11 a.m. CT followed by a night cap against Boston College at 6 p.m. before finishing out the weekend against Iona University on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The Red Raiders are coming off a weekend where they faced Tarleton State in an exhibition and played in the annual Red & Black Scrimmage. Tech took all five sets played against the Texans and hit a .415 thanks to 49 kills and just five errors.
THE MATCHUPS-
Historically, Tech is a combined 4-0 against these teams but will be facing Iona University for the first time in program history. The last time the Red Raiders faced one of these teams was in 2012 when they beat Boston College 3-2.
QUICK HITS-
Breaking down the transfers-
Five players on the team spent last season wearing different uniforms. Reagan Leinen and Mia Wesley from Southern Miss, Hanna Borer from Virginia Tech, Alyiah McDonald from Oregon State and Jasmine Martin from Washington State. Wesley comes into Lubbock with 1,876 points, 1,619 kills and 972 digs as Borer comes in with 1,635 assists and 446 digs. McDonald has the most career blocks on the team with 218 and Leinen comes in with 398 kills and 474 points while Martin has recorded 111 blocks and 136 points. In total, this group has combined to play over 1,100 collegiate sets, a testament to the experience on the team.
Williams rise-
Junior Brynn Williams took a major leap last year after playing in just 12 matches her freshman season. She finished second on the team in kills (290), points (351.5) as well as digs (245) putting together a well-rounded sophomore campaign.
Merrick’s career year-
Graduate student Emily Merrick shined in her first year with Tech last season after spending four previous seasons at Tennessee. Merrick finished third on the team in points (212.5) and kills (184) while tacking on 53 blocks and finishing the season with six double-digit kill games.
QUOTES-
Brynn Williams-
“Going into my junior year, I learned a lot from my sophomore year like working through what it is to be a six-rotation player and have that experience. This year, I have more maturity and more experience and want to keep building on top of what I’ve already done and accomplished last year and work with my teammates to pull out some wins.”
“We had plenty girls leave out, but we had amazing girls come in. They’ve really made the team. They’ve helped make us what we are and build the culture. We showed them how things go around here and are just continuing to build. We’ve done a good job of recognizing that we have new personalities, new personnel and new amazing elements to the team to help build the team. Things are new, but also better.”
“We’re in for a season. I’m really excited. We have a lot of talent and a lot of great leadership on the team.”
Tony Graystone-
“I thought we looked pretty good this weekend. Tarleton was nice, we got off to a hot start, the offense was clicking, and we were pretty terminal and fast. As we opened up the lineup and got the roster more involved it was nice to see them stay composed and play well with everyone on the court. Red and black is always a fun night, it was competitive, and I liked how everyone got after it.”
“We are still working on connections and getting the hitters and setters on the same page at all times so we are not giving those possessions away and take better swings and we are getting there. I thought we looked really good offensively. Day-by-day, it’s still on the list and it’ll always be a work in progress but we have the tools to do it. I like where are offense is at right now.”
–TECH–
Release Provided By Jay Strader Texas Tech Athletics