RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team enjoyed incredible success in the 2025 season. 
 
The Vaqueros won the program's fourth conference title as they dominated in their second season competing in the Southland Conference (SLC), going 15-1 to claim the regular season championship. They went 22-8 overall, earning the second-most wins in program history. They won 16 consecutive matches, notching a new program best for longest winning streak. They saw a record number of fans fill the UTRGV Fieldhouse to support the squad during its impressive run. 
 
The individual accomplishments were just as numerous as the team ones. Head coach Todd Lowery was named the Katrinka Jo Crawford SLC Coach of the Year – one of four superlatives and 10 total all-conference honors collected by UTRGV this season, leading all teams in the conference in postseason awards for the second consecutive year. Junior Isabella Costantini earned her second SLC Setter of the Year title, while sophomore outside hitter Martina Franco was named the Newcomer of the Year and outside hitter Dimitra Nanou was tabbed Freshman of the Year. 
 
Costantini, Franco and Nanou earned First Team All-Conference recognition while junior libero Celianiz Cabranes, junior outside hitter Nadine Zech and redshirt sophomore middle blocker Julianna Bryant made Second Team All-Conference. 
 
Since the preseason practices in early August, Lowery knew his gym was packed with talent and potential. But the Vaqueros were also starting the 2025 campaign with only three consistent starters from the previous season and nine completely new players on the roster. 
 
The first month of the season was filled with ups and downs as Lowery and his coaching staff put the pieces of the puzzle together. UTRGV mixed up lineups and saw many players get reps in different spots as early bang-ups caused some changes to rotations. 
 
Throughout four non-conference tournaments, Lowery said the Vaqueros were either really good or really bad with not much in between. Seven of UTRGV's first 11 matches were decided in three sets – if the Vaqueros came out sharp, they swept their way to victory, but when things were bumpy, they got swept just as quickly. They played some competitive matches against future top 50 and tournament teams such as UTEP, James Madison and Texas State. 
 
UTRGV split Week 1 of the SLC season, sweeping Lamar at home before dropping an extremely tight match at Stephen F. Austin, 3-2. Something clicked after that loss in Nacogdoches. The Vaqueros didn't hang their heads after the match – instead, Lowery said, seeing how close they were that early in the season to knocking off the perennial power showed the team how high their ceiling was. They knew they had things to work on, but they also saw that they were ahead of schedule in terms of their goals for 2025, and they used that as motivation to find another level of play. 
 
"We talked tournament run all year long because that's where we thought we'd be. Our goal was to be playing our best volleyball at the end of the year, but they were able to mesh together so quickly and things started falling in place after that SFA match," Lowery said. "We saw flashes, at times, where we were really, really good. The girls were never shaken up by the early losses. They exposed some things to work on and the girls took those things as challenges." 
 
After starting the year 6-7, the Vaqueros stacked up 16 wins in a row. They closed the regular season with a 14-match winning streak to earn the No. 2 seed in the SLC Tournament. They dominated the first two rounds of the tournament, sweeping Houston Christian and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi to set up a championship bout of destiny against SFA. UTRGV came up short in the title match, but they came out of it hungrier than ever. 
 
"We felt like it was a coin toss going into that match. It's always going to be a battle for us against SFA. I think now that we've been in the championship, we'll be mentally more prepared. I think the moment got to us a little bit this year, but I think having so many pieces back, we'll take care of that next year," Lowery said. 
 
In the locker room after the match and in end-of-year meetings with the coaching staff, the Vaqueros players talked about two things: how determined they are to build on the 2025 success and how fun this season was. 
 
That response encapsulates the culture UTRGV established this fall. The Vaqueros had a special season because they truly enjoyed playing together and going to work every day. They were determined to get better for the team more than for their individual goals. Players dutifully stepped up or stepped aside as rotations changed based on the hot hand, and even when someone was on the sideline instead of on the court for a few matches, they cheered for their teammates and continued to compete in practice as if they were the starter. 
 
The selfless play and encouraging environment led to outstanding play. The Vaqueros hit over .400 as a team in five matches, including tabbing two of the most efficient performances in program history as they hit .471 at McNeese and .463 at Nicholls, taking the third and fourth spots in the record books for best single-match hitting percentage. UTRGV had three hitters with 200+ kills and six players who scored 2.24 points per set or better, with senior right side Valentina Sarti Cipriani and junior middle blocker Aaliyah Snead contributing at a high rate along with the four attackers who earned all-conference honors.  
 
The team accomplishments, the individual accolades, the records set; it all amounted to a season UTRGV will look back on with pride. It was fun. It was special. It was program-shifting, but not just because of the success. The culture established in 2025 – one of genuine fun and dedication and support in a team-first environment – was the key to the historic season, and the Vaqueros will hold that key tight and use it to unlock even more potential with a veteran group next season. 

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