RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The 2025 Southland Volleyball All-Conference and Superlative awards were announced Wednesday and The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) had a program-record seven honorees as Todd Lowery was named the Katrinka Jo Crawford Coach of the Year, junior Isabella Costantini was named the Setter of the Year, sophomore Martina Franco was named the Newcomer of the Year, and Dimitra Nanou was named the Freshman of the Year. 
 
Costantini, Franco and Nanou all tabbed First Team All-Conference honors. Redshirt sophomore Harlingen High alum Julianna Bryant, junior Celianiz Cabranes and junior Nadine Zech were voted Second Team All-Conference.  
 
UTRGV led all teams with seven honorees. This is the second consecutive year the Vaqueros have earned more all-conference awards than any other team in the Southland after having five honorees in 2024. 
 
This is Lowery's second conference coach of the year award after winning the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) award in 2022. Lowery led a team with nine new players and only three returning starters to the SLC championship in UTRGV's second year in the league. The Vaqueros (20-7, 15-1 SLC) closed the regular season winning 14 consecutive matches, which is a program record and the sixth-longest streak in the nation. 
 
Costantini is now a two-time SLC Setter of the Year and First Team honoree. She led the conference in total assists (674), assists per set (11.62), aces (39) and aces per set (0.67) in league play. She has the UTRGV offense leading the league and ranking 21^st in the nation in hitting percentage – the Vaqueros hit an incredible .309 in conference action with a league-best 14.50 kills per set. UTRGV is the best serving team in the conference and Costantini is the headliner. She tabbed six double-doubles in 16 conference matches, averaging 2.41 digs per set with 44 kills and 25 blocks. Costantini ranks 11^th in the nation in assists and aces per set, 12^th in total aces and 26^th in total assists. She was a three-time SLC Setter of the Week award winner. 
 
Franco, an outside hitter transfer from UTSA, stepped into a new gym and immediately became a key contributor for a championship team. She stood out in the deep Vaqueros offense with a team-high tying 3.47 kills/set in conference play and produced 4.13 points/set, scoring in a variety of ways from the outside pin and back row. She hit .296 in SLC action and had five double-doubles in 12 contests with two 20+ kill performances. She averaged 2.82 digs per set in league play, which is second on the team behind the libero, and served 12 aces. 
 
Nanou was one of the most consistent six-rotation players in the conference in her rookie season. She averaged a team-high tying 3.47 kills/set with a .280 hitting percentage in league play, showing her IQ as she mixed up powerful hits, off-speed attacks and tooled the block with ease. Nanou played in all 16 conference matches and scored a team-high 4.16 points/set, ranking fifth in the Southland, as she totaled 191 kills, 30 aces and 13 blocks. She tallied 2.76 digs per set and held a .969 receiving percentage while recording five conference double-doubles with two 20+ kill performances and four 15+ dig matches. 
 
Bryant bounced back from missing most of the 2024 season due to injury to be one of the best middle blockers in the conference. She started in all 16 SLC matches and averaged 1.00 blocks, 2.75 points, and 2.16 kills per set while hitting .313. She ranks fourth in the SLC with 58 conference blocks and had five matches with 10+ kills from the middle. She recorded five or more blocks in three conference matches. Bryant earned one SLC Defensive Player of the Week award this season. 
 
Cabranes, a two-time all-conference honoree at libero, anchored the impressive UTRGV defense with 4.95 digs per set and a .954 receiving percentage in conference play. Her passing prowess and ability to handle hard-hit balls led to Cabranes recording 20+ digs in five conference matches, including a league-high 40 digs in a win at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. She added 46 assists and 15 aces in conference play. Cabranes showed athleticism and great instincts match after match as she protected the entire court and extended rallies. Cabranes was named SLC Defensive Player of the Week three times this season. 
 
Zech averaged 3.74 points and 3.29 kills per set with a .296 hitting percentage in 10 conference matches. She ranked 10^th in the conference in kills per set as one of three UTRGV hitters in the top 10 of the league in the stat category, adding to the depth of the offense. The outside hitter swung from the right side in some matches and tabbed 10+ kills in 50% of her conference contests with four double-doubles as she averaged 2.38 digs per set. This is Zech's third consecutive all-conference recognition after making the WAC All-Freshman team in 2023 and the SLC Second Team in 2024. She earned one SLC Offensive Player of the Week award this season. 
 
#2 UTRGV will face #7 Houston Christian University Friday at 1 p.m. in the quarterfinals of the SLC Tournament. 
 
2025 Southland Volleyball All-Conference Superlative Winners
Coach of the Year - Todd Lowery, UTRGV
Player of the Year - Kyra McKelvey, OPP, Jr., Southeastern
Setter of the Year - Isabella Costantini, S, Jr., UTRGV
Libero of the Year - Brooklyn Jaeger, L, R-So., Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
Newcomer of the Year - Martina Franco, OH, So., UTRGV
Freshman of the Year - Dimitra Nanou, OH, Fr., UTRGV
 
2025 Southland Volleyball First Team All-Conference
Gracie Campbell, OH, East Texas A&M
Jade Washington, L, East Texas A&M
Callissa Allison, S, So., UIW
Kyla Malone, OH, Sr., UIW
Maja Malinowska, OH, So., Lamar
India Bennett, MB, Sr., Southeastern
Kyra McKelvey, OPP, Jr., Southeastern
Camryn Hill, OH, Sr., SFA
Katherine Holtman, OH, So., SFA
Brooklyn Jaeger, L, R-So., Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
Virginia Van Der Werff, S, So., Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
Isabella Costantini, S, Jr., UTRGV
Martina Franco, OH, So., UTRGV
Dimitra Nanou, OH, Fr., UTRGV
 
2025 Southland Volleyball Second Team All-Conference
Archie Allana, MB, Jr., HCU
Taisha Rhone, OH/DS, Jr., Lamar
Tamara Chavez, OH, Gr., Nicholls
Alexis Logarbo, OPP, Sr., Southeastern
Julianna Bryant, MB, R-So., UTRGV 
Celianiz Cabranes, L, Jr., UTRGV
Nadine Zech, OH, Jr., UTRGV


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