“Why not us”: a staple for the Aggies all the way to the trophy.
On Dec. 21, 2025 in Kansas City, Missouri, No. 3 seed Texas A&M displayed the “grit” it has showcased all throughout the NCAA Division I Volleyball Tournament in the championship, beating No. 1 seed Kentucky 3-0 to capture the program’s first title.
In the first ever all-SEC title game, the Aggies trailed as many as six points in the first set and were down a set point. But with the power of teamwork, they pulled off the set win after a kill by redshirt sophomore Kendal Stowers tied the match at 24 all, a block by senior middle blocker Ifenna Cos-Okpalla gave the Aggies a set point, then a kill by Stowers to seal it.
Ever since then, the Aggies never trailed the rest of the way through.
The team built a strong résumé of upsets just to make it to the title game, starting with a reverse sweep against No. 2 seed Louisville in the Regional Semifinal, followed by a Regional Final upset previously undefeated No. 1 Nebraska.
“I just said [to my team], ‘We’ve been here before. We’ve been there twice.’ I brought up the Louisville match,” head coach Jamie Morrison said in an interview with ESPN. “We talked about Louisville being down 0-2. We talked about Nebraska. I just said, ‘It’s going to take one or two points, start to get firing, they’re going to be there.’”
The second set was a true breakthrough for the Aggies, showing consistency and carrying their lead over Kentucky, finishing 25-15 after an attack error by the Wildcats. In the third set, Texas A&M had a tight grip on its lead, which was strong enough to clinch the title when Cos-Okpalla’s kill brought the final set score to 25-20.
Leading the team with 11 kills, 6-foot-3 senior opposite hitter Logan Lednicky fought back tears as she was reflecting on her journey in College Station, crediting the nine seniors for helping build the program into what it is today.
“I was pretty emotional all day today just knowing that no matter the outcome of this game, it would be my last chance to represent A&M on my chest,” Lednicky said.
In the title game, Stowers totaled 10 kills and claimed the Most Outstanding Player award, showcasing her resilience all throughout her collegiate career. Prior to transferring to Texas A&M, she medically retired from Baylor due to a series of concussions over extensive periods. She had 17 kills against Louisville, 25 against Nebraska, and 16 against Pitt.
“A year ago today, I sat on my couch and watched some good friends of mine actually win the game,” Stowers said, referring to Penn State’s victory over Louisville during the 2024 National Championship. “Now, to be living that is generally surreal. It was a journey to get here, good days and bad days. It took this guy sitting next to me [Morrison] believing in me after not playing volleyball for over a year and a half, to take me on his roster and coach me every single day.”
From the first round all the way to the championship, Texas A&M’s tournament run was built by “grit.” In the regional semifinal match against Louisville, the Aggies were two points away from being sent home. This ended up being the fuel for the fire, as they outscored their opponents 317-276. In addition, the team wasn’t ranked at all during the regular season last year, and now they’ve knocked three of the four No.1 seeds out.
“It’s a testament to the work we put in in the practice gym and just generally in all of our careers,” Lednicky said after the semifinal game against Pitt.
Before, Kentucky was on a four game winning streak against Texas A&M, with the most recent win being at College Station in four sets on Oct. 8. During the postgame press conference, head coach Craig Skinner gave credit to A&M’s passing as a key difference maker.
“They handled our serve really well early,” Skinner said. “Our serving pressure didn’t allow them to get in sync when we were down at College Station [in October]. Today, they were in sync.”
Representing the Aggies, Stowers, Cos-Okpalla, Lednicky, and senior libero Ava Underhood were featured on the All-Tournament Team. In addition to them, Eva Hudson with Kentucky and Olivia Babcock with Pittsburgh (National Player of the Year) were also highlighted.
In regards to TV viewership, the championship generated 1.4 million viewers, which is the second most-watched title game ever. As far as the national semifinal, Wisconsin vs Kentucky has 1.1 million viewers, which is the second most- watched semifinal game ever, and Texas A&M vs Pitt scored 1 million viewers.
According to ESPN’s Way-Too-Early Top 10 for 2026, the Aggies sit at No. 10.
