Texas A&M Aggies Volleyball Knock Off No. 1 Seed Pitt Panthers In NCAA National Semifinal
There are moments in sports where a team doesn’t just win; they announce their arrival. For Texas A&M volleyball, that announcement came loud and clear in Kansas City on Thursday night.
In a semifinal match where the pressure was thick enough to cut with a knife, the Aggies didn’t just survive against Pitt—they thrived. With a commanding three-set sweep, Texas A&M punched its ticket to the program’s first-ever NCAA national championship game.
Coach Jamie Morrison kept it simple in the locker room before the chaos began. His message wasn’t a long, winding “win one for the Gipper” speech. It was just three words: “We are here.” It was a reminder to stay grounded. A reminder to be exactly who they’ve been all season. And looking at the box score, the Aggies took that message to heart.
Grit, Grind, and a Little Bit Of Magic
If you’ve watched this squad all year, you know their identity isn’t about flashiness or perfect polish. It’s about grit. Senior Logan Lednicky said it best after their regional win over Nebraska: “We are the grittiest.”
That grit was on full display in the first set. It was a heavyweight fight, trading blows well past the usual 25-point mark. At one point, it looked like A&M had the set wrapped up at 25-23 on a Lednicky kill, but the officials reviewed it and ruled the ball out. Tie game. Momentum shift? Not for this group.
Pitt had their own set point moments later, but the Aggies refused to blink. Finally, on their fifth attempt to close it out, Kyndal Stowers delivered a thunderous kill to seal a wild 29-27 victory. Stowers was an absolute machine early on, racking up nine kills in that opening frame without a single error. That’s not just good; that’s video game numbers.
Turning Defense Into Offense For Texas A&M
The second set brought a different challenge. The Panthers, making their fifth straight Final Four appearance, but still chasing that elusive ring, ripped off an 8-0 run to take a 15-11 lead. In past years, maybe Texas A&M folds there. Not this team. Not on this stage.
Enter Ifenna Cos-Okpalla. Her block on Pitt’s Olivia Babcock shifted the energy entirely, setting up a set point. When Babcock’s next swing sailed long, the Aggies took the second set 25-21, putting a stranglehold on the match.
By the third set, you could feel the belief radiating off the Texas A&M side of the net. Maddie Waak, who has been quarterbacking this offense masterfully, ripped a strong serve to give the Aggies an 11-10 lead, their first of the set, and they never really looked back. A 25-20 finish sealed the deal.
“We just played good volleyball and had fun,” Morrison said afterward, perhaps underplaying the magnitude of what just happened. “It’s pretty simple. They have a lot of grit, and anytime another team makes a run, they answer.”
One Win Away From Glory
The road to this Sunday’s final hasn’t been a leisurely stroll for Texas A&M. To get to Kansas City, Texas A&M had to claw back from a 0-2 hole against Louisville and then walk into Lincoln and beat the unbeaten, No. 1 seed Nebraska Cornhuskers on their own floor.
Now, they stand on the precipice of history. They will face either Kentucky or Wisconsin on Sunday at 2:30 p.m., looking to bring the hardware home to College Station.
