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Rice Volleyball: 2021 season begins in thrilling fashion

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Rice Volleyball rallied from an early deficit to win its season opener, showcasing the kind of resiliency they’ll need to succeed this year.

In many respects, it was surreal for coach Genny Volpe and Rice Volleyball to just be back in action at Tudor Fieldhouse against Houston on Saturday. When the first serve landed it broke a streak of 471 days since the Owls played a game that counted on their home court. The primary driver for such a lengthy delay, COVID-19, hasn’t gone away, but the Owls have worked incredibly hard to get to this point. They’re not going to quit now.

“It was great to be back in the gym and just great for the team to be able to compete,” Volpe said in the aftermath. “They were loving every second of it. The good, the bad, the ugly, they were loving the competition.”

The first stanza of the new season provided an immediate test from their crosstown rivals. Houston came out swinging, capitalizing on the Owls’ mistakes, winning the first two sets 25-20 and 25-18. Rice hit just .053 and .103 in those frames, well under the .269 rate they hit at last season.

Volpe mentioned she spoke to the team for about a minute in the break between sets. “There was no magic stuff,” she admitted, praising the teams’ resiliency. “Volleyball. it’s a game of momentum, and we didn’t have it. And we found a way to grab it and never let go of it.”

From that point onward, Rice would settle in. They took the third set 25-22 and the fourth by a commanding 25-12 score. When push came to shove, the Cougars couldn’t match the Owls’ firepower in the final set. Rice prevailed 15-11, clinching the match with a kill from Nicole Lennon.

Lennon (18 kills) had a solid day, but Volpe herself called it a team effort, citing performances by Tia Grippo, Elizabeth Labue and Maddie Fowler. Freshman Nia McCardell, Danyle Courtley and Sahara Maruska shined, too.

“A lot of people played today,” Volpe said, “There’s a lot of people making contributions and I think, what I’m so excited about,  is how we have so many options.” Those options each made their marks, setting the stage for a promising season despite the challenges that loom ahead.

Rice will close January with one more game against Houston and a two-game set with SMU in Dallas. From there, it’s onto conference play. The Owls know it’s going to be a bumpy ride, but they’re committed to seeing it through. Expectations haven’t waivered. Volpe knows the Owls’ opponents will have to navigate through similar challenges.

Having the poise to push through the noise and stay ready, that’s what will separate this team from its challengers. “Once this whistle new and we started, it was natural, it really was,” Volpe said. And just like they had so many times before, Rice found a way to win.

📸 @LysakerPhotos
January 23, 2021 : during the match between the Houston Cougars and the Rice Owls at Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston, Texas. Rice pulls from behind 0-1, 0-2, 1-2, 2-2, 3-2 for the win. (Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker | Rice Athletics). Used with permission.
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Rice Volleyball: Owls ready for 2021 spring season

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Rice Volleyball will soon begin its 2021 spring season. From the key games to preseason accolades. Here’s everything you need to know.

Amid the many changes forced on college athletics by COVID-19, Conference USA moved all fall team sports (except football) to the spring semester. That included the Rice Volleyball season, which will begin in late January now rather than having its traditional fall start. When the Owls do retake the court, they’ll do so with robust expectations.

Rice Volleyball has continued to climp under the direction of head coach Genny Volpe. The Owls have reached the NCAA Tournament in each of the last three seasons, winning 20+ games in all three years. In the Owls’ most recent campaign, they finished an outstanding 27-4. That’s a high bar, but the Owls won’t shy away from the lofty precedent.

Preseason C-USA Poll

Conference USA moved to divisional formats for the season rather than the traditional top-to-bottom ranks. Rice was picked to win the West. Western Kentucky was picked to win the East. The Owls finished a game behind the Hilltoppers in the overall conference standings last season.

Preseason All C-USA Team selections

Rice had two players selected to the preseason All-Conference team: Nicole Lennon and Anota Adekunle. Both earned First Team All-Conference selections at the end of last season.

Notable games

Rice opens their season at Tudor Fieldhouse on Saturday, Jan. 23. Then they’ll make the short trip down the road to the Fertitta Center to play Houston on Sunday, Jan. 24. That marks the first set of a series of couplets versus like opponents.

Conference play begins on Feb. 7 and Feb. 8 at home against Louisiana Tech. The Owls will play 12 conference games against six opponents before closing out their regular season with marquee matchups home against Baylor (Mar. 19) and at Texas (Mar. 23.)

Any necessary makeup games will be played the week between those nonconference games at the Conference USA Tournament, slated to begin on April 1. You can see the complete schedule here.

Offseason notes

Rice Volleyball was featured in part of our extended offseason showcase, featuring stories about Nicole Lennon’s ascent and expectations for the team in 2021 any beyond. You can check those five pieces out here.

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Rice Athletics: Extended offseason showcase series

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Showcasing a variety of Rice Athletics programs who don’t always get the spotlight was a focal point of the 2020 Extended Offseason. Check out key storylines across many Owls’ sports.

When sports were canceled in March the offseason calendar was more than doubled almost overnight. The silver lining in the midst of the heavy situation was additional time to shed some light on a few Rice Athletics programs that hadn’t been given as much of a spotlight on the site before. Over the span of the last few months, we’ve run weekly series on other programs beyond the revenue sports that typically get the most attention (although we wrote about those too). Here’s a summary of those series, all in one place:

Volleyball

Soccer

Swimming

Tennis

Baseball

Men’s Basketball

Women’s Basketball

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Rice Football: Owls cautious with return to campus plans

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Rice football decision-makers are currently evaluating a plan to return to campus. When that will be and what it will look like remain to be seen.

The future of college football is as uncertain now as its ever been, but a light has seemingly appeared on the horizon. The NCAA opened the door for college athletes to return to campus in June. That decision came after nearly a 3-month hiatus from all university athletic facilities. What that looks like, and when it will occur, vary from conference to conference and school to school.

The SEC opted for a uniform decision. League presidents voted to allow athletes to return to campus starting June 8 for voluntary workouts. Conference USA has left it up to each member institution. The Houston Cougars open their facilities across town for their student-athletes on June 1.

The ramifications of decisions of this kind rose to the forefront quickly. Three Marshall players tested positive for COVID-19 upon their return to campus. Outside of Conference USA, five Alabama players tested positive for the virus after interacting with roughly 50 players who had also returned to campus.

The Roost Podcast: Listen now to our Extended Offseason Interview Series

On May 29, Rice Athletic Director Joe Karlgaard issued an update on the Owls’ decision-making process in that area:

Speaking of return to campus, the NCAA has approved student-athletes to return to their respective campuses on a voluntary basis beginning June 1. We have not yet set a date for our own return to campus and will work with Rice leadership to ensure we can bring back our staff and student-athletes as safely as possible. We remain on track to begin our fall sports seasons on time, but with a rapidly changing and fluid situation, we are also prepared to make calendar adjustments as necessary.

The Owls are going to be cautious about this. The positive test results from other schools add to the reason for concern.

“We have to make the best decisions that we can when we’re required to make them with the information we have on hand knowing that information could change tomorrow,” Karlgaard said following the release. He added that he feels “really good about where we are and our approach.”

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Conference USA: Scheduling changes coming soon

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Conference USA athletics scheduling changes are on their way with modifications to the upcoming fall sports calendar expected soon.

The extended offseason has been a busy one for Conference USA and its member institutions and conversations among league officials and athletic directors about the structure of future schedules have been at the forefront.

“I don’t think there’s any question that our geographic stretch is a challenge for us,” Rice Athletic Director Joe Karlgaard said. “Pre-pandemic it was something that we made work. I think post-pandemic it’s something that we are really looking closely at.”

Ideas have been tossed around from sources inside and outside of Conference USA. Basketball is expected to end bonus play and could consider moving to a divisional structure to reduce travel. Olympics sports, in particular, are taking a hard look at more regionalized scheduling.

Administrators are also keeping an eye on what’s happening across the nation. The MAC cut postseason tournaments in several sports. Those changes reflect the historical Ivy League model, which traditionally awarded regular-season champions with any relevant postseason bids.

What will those changes look like? Karlgaard said the scope was far-reaching. “All of that is on the table for us to evaluate going forward.”

The Roost Podcast: Listen now to our Extended Offseason Interview Series

This is not smoke and mirrors. Karlgaard has already been in discussion with Athletic Directors at schools in close geographic proximity. “They’re all interested [in regionalized scheduling],” he said. “What form and shape that takes, I think, is going to take longer for us to hash out.”

Long term scheduling adjustments will take time to play out, but changes to the upcoming seasons are imminent. Karlgaard indicated that he expects Conference USA to address fall scheduling as soon as this week, particularly with athletes now allowed to return to campus at several member schools. Rice had not yet set a timetable for the return of their own student-athletes.

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