12th Man gets first look at No. 9 Aggies in Maroon & White scrimmage
Editor’s Note: Official statistics of the Maroon & White Scrimmage were not made available to the media. While set scores are correct, individual stats are educated estimates.
It’s official. Texas A&M volleyball season is underway!
Nine days out from the AVCA First Serve match vs. No. 11 Minnesota, the ninth-ranked Aggies are looking more ready than ever.
Third-year head coach Jamie Morrison and the Ags held their annual Maroon & White Scrimmage at Reed Arena on Saturday for their first official action of 2025.
“We have a lot of talent in our team,” Morrison said after the match. “We have a lot of people that can do a lot of good things and add value in different ways, so I’m excited to go back and watch a video of it.”
The Aggies played four competitive sets, with Team White winning all four (25-19, 27-25, 25-15, 18-16) while constantly mixing and matching rosters.
With nine seniors in the program, A&M’s anticipation to get back on the court and give it their all was at an all-time high.
“I think you treat these scrimmages as a chance to go put on a uniform, get some of the nerves out and test out some of the things they’ve been working on,” Morrison said. “I thought we did a good job of that as it’s really hard to find things to improve on when we’re already pretty good.”
The Aggies are coming off a strong run in last year’s NCAA Tournament, where they ended up making the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2019.
Their surprising run, boosted by Logan Lednicky’s 73 tournament kills, dramatically ended with a 3 -2 loss to Wisconsin.
However, that was not the only notable feat from the Aggies as they got 10 SEC wins — the most since 2019.
That total included a fiery win against No. 7 Texas, which marked A&M’s first win over the archrival Longhorns since 2010.
On Saturday, one noteworthy performance from this scrimmage was senior Taylor Humphrey, who led the team in kills with 13. One play even included an incredible one-handed backwards save.
“She’s a really undervalued volleyball player,” Morrison said. “I think just some of the things that we value a lot in our program, she does off-the-charts well.”
Seniors Ifenna Cos-Okpalla and Lednicky’s high-energy style of play was evident on the court as Cos-Okpalla racked 11 blocks, while Lednicky accumulated 11 kills.
The only Aggies not to see action in the split-squad was senior setter Maddie Waak, but she will return to practice next week.
Additionally, junior Margot Manning left during the third set due to an apparent injury and did not return. Assistant coach Jeff Fiorenza filled the void and switched sides throughout the remaining sets to keep the rest of the team in a normal rotation.
Despite this confusion, audiences were able to get a clear glimpse of the lead performers on the team — though no starting lineup is officially set yet.
“As we are getting closer, I would say it was a chance to kind of get some different people out here and see what’s going on,” Morrison said. “And for me, since we are such a talented team, it’s a chance for me to find roles for different people to come in and add value in different ways. I think that’s what we’re trying to figure out next.”
With most of A&M’s roster being veterans, it’s important to develop and highlight the incoming freshmen and transfers.
Among these was rookie Megan Fitch, who started the game off strong with three immediate kills in the first set and finished with nine.
“You’re seeing one of the top-ranked classes that we’ve ever had here," Morrison said. “And with that, you’re seeing these people that have stuck out and developed across three years or two years that they’ve been here, and we’ve had this influx of young talent. Just what you’re seeing here is the level in our practice gym every single day.”
Next, the Aggies are set to play No. 20 Baylor in an exhibition match on Wednesday, Aug. 20. First serve is set for 6 p.m. CT.
Down the road, the 2025 season officially begins in Sioux Falls, SD, against the Golden Gophers on Aug. 25, and SEC action is slated to start on Sept. 24 against No. 17 Missouri.
