RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros volleyball team had a good year in 2024, recording its fourth winning season in a row with a 16-12 record and its fourth postseason berth. 
 
This year, the Vaqueros are emphasizing development of a young squad and disciplined play to aim for their No. 1 goal: making it back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016. There are nine newcomers and five freshmen on the roster compared to just two seniors. It's going to take time and true trust in the process for UTRGV to put it all together when the time is right and make a run in the Southland Conference (SLC) Tournament. 
 
"We've won the regular season a few times, and it's nice, but the ultimate goal is winning the conference tournament and being in the NCAA tournament," head coach Todd Lowery said. "Our goal with this team is to get better every single day and to really focus on that and not get ahead of ourselves. That's hard to do, but it's a big part of what we have to do. We have to manage the roster and we have to grow people." 
 
With so many new faces trying to get on the same page, Lowery adjusted the preseason routine to really hone-in on the basics and the style of play UTRGV wants to deploy. The coaching staff slowed things down with the intent of the team performing their best in November. With that approach in mind, the first three to four weeks of the season will see the Vaqueros mix up lineups and offenses. Lowery wants to find which pieces work best together and give plenty of reps to the freshmen on the squad. 
 
"We want to go out and compete, but we'll take our time and play some different lineups and give people opportunities. I'm sure there's going to be some ups and downs over the first three or four weeks here, but we have to start settling in and getting ready for conference play," Lowery said. "A big part of it is just finding out what works best for us and until we get on the court and we're all on the same side and we're going head-to-head with someone, there's a bunch of unknowns for us right now." 
 
What is known for UTRGV is the core group of returners the squad will be depending on, including a trio of 2024 All-Conference honorees in juniors Isabella Costantini, Celianiz Cabranes and Nadine Zech. 
 
Costantini is the reigning SLC Setter and Newcomer of the Year and has taken a big step forward in leading the team as she prepares for Year 2 with the Vaqueros. Cabranes, the 2024 SLC Libero of the Year, has come back sharp and will be an important part of UTRGV's passing game, which will impact the offensive tempo. Zech is a two-time all-conference honoree who has shown consistent improvement while at UTRGV. Her powerful arm looks poised to be a reliable piece of the attack. 
 
Lowery said freshman outside hitter Dimitra Nanou and junior setter/defensive specialist Sujeili Mermella have been a couple of standouts among the newcomers. They looked solid when the Vaqueros competed in a preseason exhibition match at St. Mary's and Lowery expects them to contribute throughout the season. 
 
Injuries slowed UTRGV down in the middle last season, but this year the Vaqueros are confident their big trio of juniors Julianna Bryant, Aaliyah Snead and Shylah Totten will help bring variety to the offense and improve the block. UTRGV is incredibly deep at the pin positions, so with sharp passing and a strong presence at middle blocker, the Vaqueros expect to play fast and be multiple on the attack. 
 
UTRGV has a competitive slate of opponents coming up in the next few weeks. Arguably no weekend will be a better indicator of where the Vaqueros need to be by the end of the season than the home tournament, the Southwest Showdown, featuring a trio of 2024 NCAA Tournament squads in Texas State, UTEP and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Lowery is eager to see how the Vaqueros stack up to the tougher teams on the schedule. 
 
"We have a bunch of teams on our schedule that have been in the tournament a lot recently, and having those teams come here or playing them on the road gives you an exact idea of where you need to be. That'll be good for us, lining up against those kind of opponents," Lowery said. 
 
As the Vaqueros prepare to begin another season, they aren't expecting everything to come together right away. They'll focus first on being disciplined, then on finding the right combinations, and then on hitting their stride when it matters most. 

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