Texas Longhorns women's volleyball

Year by year results

1986-1988

Texas made its first ever NCAA final four in 1986, coming in third place overall and finishing the year with a 29-6 record. In 1987, the team made it back to the final four, once again coming into third place and finishing the season with a 25-10 record.

In 1988, Texas broke through and won the NCAA national championship by sweeping Hawai'i 3-0. Texas became the first team in NCAA history (and, as of 2016, remains one of two schools to do so) to sweep every NCAA tournament opponent 3-0 en route to winning the NCAA championship.

1995

Texas made it to the championship match, falling to Nebraska 3-1. In 1995, Demetria Sance became the program's first ever player to be named the National Freshman of the Year.

Texas playing Nebraska in 2004

2007-present

In 2007, Texas captured its second ever Big 12 title, sharing it with Nebraska and finished with a 19–1 conference record. The 2007 squad finished off the season with a 27–4 record and made it to the NCAA regional finals as the tournament's overall 4th seed. 2007 Big 12 Freshman of the Year Juliann Faucette became the program's second ever AVCA National Freshman of the Year and earned AVCA First Team All-America honors – becoming only the fourth true freshman in eight years to be named on the first team.

In 2008, Texas shared the Big 12 title with Nebraska with an 18–2 record. The team finished 29–4 overall, making it to the NCAA Final Four, where they took a 2-0 lead on Stanford but lost the next three to lose in five sets. Junior outside hitter Destinee Hooker was named to the Final Four All-Tournament Team and was also a Honda Sports Award nominee for the top volleyball player in the country. Hooker, junior Ashley Engle and senior Lauren Paolini were also named AVCA First Team All-Americans.

Led by senior Destinee Hooker, the 2009 Texas volleyball team lost just one regular season match to Iowa State and was ranked No. 2 in the country all season long. In the 2009 NCAA tournament, the Longhorns defeated Big-12 opponent Nebraska in the regional final, becoming the first team to ever beat Nebraska three times in a season. In the Final Four, the team soundly defeated Minnesota, and met No. 1 and undefeated Penn State in the final.

Texas looked to be on the brink of a huge upset, as they went up 2 sets to 0 against the Lions. However, Penn State stormed back to push the match to a fifth set, which they eventually won, 15-13. Penn State won their third consecutive NCAA title and denied Texas its first NCAA title since 1988. Despite the loss, Destinee Hooker was named the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player, as she had 34 kills in the championship match, which is the most kills by a single player in the NCAA final's history. It was also Hooker's career high in a single match, her final match as a collegiate player. Because of the high level of play by both teams throughout the long match, many people believe that it was the best NCAA final in history.

In 2012, Texas once again advanced to the NCAA Final game in which they played Oregon for the National Championship. Texas swept the Ducks, 3-0, and claimed its first National Title in volleyball since 1988, giving the University its 50th overall National Championship, 42 of which are NCAA Championships.

The program continued to excel following their national championship. In 2013 and 2014, they won the Big 12 and advanced to the national semifinals. In 2015, they once again won the Big 12 and advanced to the national championship game, but lost to Nebraska. In 2016, they finished in 2nd in the Big 12, snapping a streak of five consecutive Big 12 titles. They once again advanced to the national championship game, but lost to Stanford.

Beach volleyball

In April 2008, the American Volleyball Coaches Association and Association of Volleyball Professionals sponsored the third annual Collegiate Beach Volleyball Championship, adhering to NCAA guidelines for college volleyball.^[3] The Longhorns won the championship with a roster consisting of Jennifer Doris, Ashley Engle, Elizabeth Graham, Kiley Hall, Alyson Jennings, Heather Kisner, Chelsey Klein, Alex Lewis and Michelle Moriarty. Each school fielded four teams of two players. The field included Nebraska, Clemson, San Diego, USC, Texas and Wisconsin, all of whom were ranked in the 2007 Coaches Top 25 final poll (indoor). The Longhorns had finished the 2007 season ranked sixth.

See also

• List of NCAA Division I women's volleyball programs

References

External links

• Official website