The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Preview: No. 3 Volleyball SEC Quarterfinals - Ole Miss
11.23.2025 | Volleyball
Texas set to compete in first SEC Championships
2025 SEC Championships - Quarterfinals
No. 3 Texas vs. Ole Miss
6 pm CT | Enmarket Arena
SEC Network | Live Stats
LEADING LONGHORNS
Texas leads the nation in kills per set (14.91) and assists per set (13.96). UT also ranks fourth in the NCAA with a .307 hitting percentage - first in the league.
SEC HEAVY HITTERS
Longhorns' Ayden Ames leads the conference with a .416 hitting percentage in league play. Torrey Stafford (.358) and Nya Bunton (.355) rank eighth and ninth. Stafford ranks second in kill per set with 4.89. Ella Swindle is eighth in assists per set at 9.32 and Emma Halter ranks eighth in aces per set (0.29) and 10th in digs per set (3.59).
ELLIOTT'S SUCCESS
Jerritt Elliott is the most successful coach in Texas Volleyball history with an overall record of 630-123, good for an 84% win percentage. And postseason success is no different. Elliott boasts an 80-20 record in posteason matches.
CURRENT RANKED WINS
The No. 3 ranked Longhorns own the toughest non-con schedule in the country. Texas' nine ranked wins (No. 12 Creighton, No. 8 Wisconsin, No. 6 Stanford, No. 4 Louisville, No. 9 Arizona State, No. 9 TCU, No. 21 Baylor, No. 21 Missouri, and No. 17 Tennessee) is the most through 14 games in program history and surpassed the number of ranked wins last season (5). Texas holds the second strongest RPI behind Nebraska.
RANKED SUCCESS
UT owns a 167-64 (.723) record against ranked opponents over the last 21 seasons (2004-24) and boasts a 76-16 (.826) home mark against ranked opponents at Gregory Gymnasium and the Frank Erwin Center (3-0) during that span. The Longhorns are now 1-0 against ranked opponents when playing at Moody Center in Austin, Texas. The Longhorns finished 5-3 last season against ranked opponents.
RUN IT BACK
The Longhorns found success against all three potential opponents last time out. Against Mizzou, Torrey Stafford hit .407 with 15 kills and was one dig away from a double-double. Cari Spears added 14 kills and hit .346, while Ella Swindle had a double-double with 37 assists and 10 digs. When facing the other Tigers in LSU, Stafford left with a double-double (10 kills/13 digs), while Spears hit .400 for 16 kills. Emma Halter posted 12 digs and four assists alongside Swindle's 22 assists and seven digs.
Against Ole Miss, Abby Vander Wal recorded a career high 21 kills and hit .422, Stafford added another double-double (16 kills/11 digs),Spears was one dig away from her own double-double (16 kills) and Swindle posted 41 assists and seven digs. Halter finished 18 digs. DOUBLE
DOUBLE MACHINE
In 23 matches, Torrey Stafford has recorded nine double doubles in the Burnt Orange uniform. She totaled six during the entire 2024 season and only four her freshman season at Pitt. Ella Swindle is second on the team with five, while Emma Halter and Cari Spears each have one. To compare, Madisen Skinner led the Longhorns last season with eight total.
ROAD HORNS
The Longhorns have won 60 of their last 63 road matches dating back to the 2019 season. Texas went on a 13-0 run on the road after two seasons in road conference matches in the SEC before suffering its first loss at Texas A&M (10/31). Before that, the last true road conference loss came against Kansas State (Big 12) on Nov. 8, 2023, marking 14-straight road conference wins for UT. Since the 2011 season Texas has produced a 134-24 (.848) record in true road matches, with only seven of those losses coming to unranked teams. TWENTY DUBS
Texas has recorded 20 or more wins in 22-straight seasons under Jerritt Elliott. There has been nine seasons under Coach Elliott with just two regular season losses.
SPEARING THE COMPETITION
Freshman Cari Spears has recorded 285 kills, averages 3.35 per set and is hitting .296 in her first 23 collegiate starts. Only Mangelson from Mississippi State has more in the conference. Spears is just 15 kills away from 300 kills as a freshman. The last time a true freshman has recorded 300 kills was Logan Eggleston in 2018 who recorded 312 in 28 matches / 100 sets.
SEARCHING FOR 300
Torrey Stafford has registered over 300 kills this season. If Cari Spears records 15 more, it will be the first time two Longhorns have recorded 300 or more since 2023 with Skinner and Wenaas. There has been 10 seasons since 2013 the Longhorns have had at least two players record 300 or more kills in a single season and nine straight from 2015-2023. Stafford is just six away from 400, which would mark the eighth time a Longhorn has reached the feat since 2013.
