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Texas Volleyball Goes From Five-Set Thriller to Three-Set Sweep

No. 7 Texas pulled off its first reverse sweep in nearly three years against No. 13 Tennessee, only to be swept by No. 3 Kentucky less than 48 hours later.
Paige Durrenberger|
Dec 17, 2022; Omaha, Nebraska, US; The Texas Longhorns bench cheer action against the Louisville Cardinals at CHI Health Center. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 17, 2022; Omaha, Nebraska, US; The Texas Longhorns bench cheer action against the Louisville Cardinals at CHI Health Center. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports

Down two sets in Knoxville, No. 7 Texas volleyball had two choices: let its Southeastern Conference opener slip away or start digging.

The Longhorns chose the latter.

Texas erased a 2-0 deficit Friday night to stun No. 13 Tennessee in five sets, 21-25, 24-26, 25-18, 25-22, 15-11, completing its first reverse sweep in nearly three years.

Two days later, however, No. 3 Kentucky stopped another comeback before it could begin, sweeping the Longhorns 25-23, 25-20, 25-21 in Lexington.

The result sent Texas back to Austin 1-1 in SEC play, but getting that split required a dramatic turnaround in Knoxville.

Playing in front of 9,226 fans — a Tennessee home attendance record — Texas spent much of Friday searching for some type of momentum. The Volunteers jumped ahead 13-6 in the opening set before holding off a late Longhorn push, then erased an 11-5 Texas advantage in the second to win 26-24, moving within one set of a sweep.

One set was all Texas needed to find some life.

The Longhorns still weren't out of trouble in the fourth, but they managed to power through. Tennessee held a 17-13 advantage and stood eight points away from closing the match. Instead, senior outside hitter Torrey Stafford powered another Texas rally. The Longhorns surged ahead 21-19 and finished off the set 25-22, forcing a fifth and turning a Tennessee crowd that had spent two sets celebrating into one watching its team fight to hand on.

This time, Texas didn't wait until it was behind.

Stafford recorded kills on the first two points of the fifth set before senior libero Ramsey Gary scored an ace to make the score 3-0. The Longhorns stretched the advantage to 10-4 before Tennessee mounted one final charge, cutting the lead to 12-10.

Texas never gave it back.

Sophomore outside hitter Cari Spears put down a kill to create some breathing room, and after the Volunteers survived one match point, Stafford ended it herself. Her 28th kill sealed a 15-11 fifth set and Texas' first reverse sweep since Oct. 26, 2023, against the Baylor Bears.

Stafford's season-high 28 kills came with 12 digs, four blocks and two aces. Senior middle blocker Nya Bunton added a career-high 14 kills while hitting .393 and junior setter Rella Binney finished with a career-high 54 assists and 14 digs. Gary anchored the back row with 21 digs.

Less than 48 hours later, the comeback magic was gone.

Texas actually landed the first punch against Kentucky, racing to a 4-0 lead in the opening set, but the Wildcats slowly erased the advantage, and neither team managed much separation afterward. The score was tied at 18, 20, 21 and 22 before Kentucky junior outside hitter Asia Thigpen put the Wildcats ahead 23-22. Kentucky ultimately escaped the closest set of the afternoon, 25-23.

With the Longhorns trailing just 12-11 in the second set, senior outside hitter Brooklyn DeLeye went to the service line, and Kentucky took control. The Wildcats rattled off four straight points, including consecutive blocks of Spears, to open a 16-11 lead. Texas never pulled closer than three again, and a service error ended the set 25-20.

For a moment in the third, another comeback looked possible.

Back-to-back Stafford kills gave Texas a 15-13 advantage, but Kentucky answered with five straight points to turn the Longhorns' lead into an 18-15 deficit. Still, Texas clawed back to even the score 19-19, but Kentucky responded to take six of the final eight points, with Longhorn attack errors ending the match 25-21.

In the span of one weekend, Texas saw both ends of life on the road in the SEC: five sets of survival in Knoxville followed by three sets of loss.

The comeback at Tennessee showed how quickly Texas can turn a match around. Kentucky showed that it won't always get the chance.

The Longhorns return to Gregory Gym on Friday, Oct. 2, at 6:30 p.m. CT, to open home SEC play against Mississippi State.

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Paige Durrenberger
PAIGE DURRENBERGER

Paige Durrenberger is a sports writer and Economics student at the University of Texas at Austin. She has covered golf, softball, and the Texas Stars for The Daily Texan and is also a contributing writer for 5Wins. Raised in Dallas, Texas, when Durrenberger isn’t covering sports, she’s either out running with her dog Bailey or cheering on whichever Dallas team is in season.

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