Lednicky dazzles as A&M dominates Campbell in front of 5,830 at Reed
Match #28: #3 Texas A&M 3, Campbell 0
S1: A&M, 25-20; S2: A&M, 25-10; S3: A&M, 25-13
Records: Texas A&M (24-4, 14-1), Campbell (23-7, 13-3)
Box Score
Each run needs a start.
Friday evening served as Texas A&M’s starting line.
The energy was electric in Reed Arena on Friday as 5,830 fans rushed in to watch the Aggies (24-4) sweep Campbell (23-7) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
For the first time since 2019, A&M is hosting the postseason, and the 12th Man did not disappoint in the first round match.
Earlier this week, Jamie Morrison and the athletic department split the cost of student tickets for the weekend matches, and 2,285 students took advantage of free admission.
“I walked outside, there was a tailgate going on, I talked to them briefly, and then I walked back inside, and the student section was already full,” Morrison said postgame. “The 12th Man was amazing. Just the amount of support that’s being shown towards our volleyball team is the most humbling thing in the world to me.
“The 12th Man is helping us win matches. They’re also making it more entertaining for me to coach when they’re heckling me to challenge something in the middle of the match.”
Morrison coached his Aggies to a dominating win, which served as both a reflection of who they are as a team and a great start to what they hope will be a deep postseason run.
“We were effortlessly ourselves,” Morrison said. “We played really smooth volleyball in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, which is a good sign for things to come.”
Logan Lednicky led the Aggie offense, as the All-American entered into the program’s top-four all-time kills list, with 18 kills, five blocks and a .645 hitting percentage.
Passing Stacy Sykora’s 1,586, Lednicky now has 1,596 to her credit and is 44 behind Hollann Hans.
Emily Hellmuth also showed out in the first round, as she had 10 kills and a .667 hitting percentage.
The Camels began the match with a competitive fire, but the Aggies did not take long to return to their usual level of play.
Despite a slight push from Campbell, a block from Lednicky and Ifenna Cos-Okpalla ended the set, 25-20.
Cos-Okpalla finished with six total blocks and now has 165 on the season, which is a program-best since 1999.
Momentum carried on for the Maroon& White in the second stanza, as they truly began to dominate. A block from Lednicky closed out the set, and the Ags won 25-10.
The Aggie kept running the show in the third, and back-to-back aces from Taylor Humphrey ended the match, 25-13.
Advance to Saturday’s second round, A&M will take on a fiery TCU team, a matchup that they fell short in earlier in the preseason, when they lost to the Horned Frogs in a five-set thriller.
“We learned a lot from that game,” Hellmuth said. “We hit an upward stride right after that loss, and it pushed us to look in the mirror and see what areas we need to grow in.”
Hellmuth had 20 kills in that five-set loss in Fort Worth.
Following that defeat, the Aggies responded by winning seven consecutive matches.
Saturday’s match is not only a chance to get revenge on the Horned Frogs, but it would also clinch A&M’s second-straight Sweet 16 appearance, as they hope to go even further this year.
“I’m super excited to get to match up with them again and show off all the work we’ve put in,” Hellmuth said.
As they advance and continue in the run for a national championship, the level of competition will continue to grow, and the Aggies will have to continue playing at their highest level if they want to achieve their goals.
The Big Dance — and A&M’s run — resumes at Reed Arena on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT.
