The Ole Miss women’s volleyball team has a promising season ahead of it this fall. Returning six of the seven starters from last year and adding seven new players, the team has a great mix of experience and youth that should result in another good season for the Rebels.
Last year, the team went 22-10 in head coach Steven McRoberts’s first year, which was the best record the Rebels had posted in seven years. Ole Miss went 8-10 in a tough SEC conference, but set a record for the best start in program history, winning 14 games before their first loss.
The schedule for the upcoming year was recently released and sets up another exciting season, highlighted by a couple of home tournaments and eight matches against teams that competed in the NCAA tournament last year, three of those coming in the out of conference schedule that looks to be tougher than last year.
The Rebels’s first match will come at home against Oral Roberts on August 28 as a part of the Magnolia Invitational tournament. Meanwhile, SEC play will begin against defending SEC champions Florida on September 25, with the first home SEC game coming against Mississippi State on September 27. The Rebels’s last regular season home game will be against Missouri on November 15, and the regular season conclusion will be at Mississippi State on November 27.
Although the schedule has its share of tough games, the team should be well equipped to handle it. Nakeyta Clair returns for her senior season after receiving Honorable Mention All-America honors from the American Volleyball Coaches Association, as well as All-SEC honors. Clair set the Ole Miss record for kills in a season with 366 and ranked second in the SEC in hitting percentage with .405. Junior Melanie Crow also returns after starting every game last year. Crow set the Ole Miss single season record for aces with 42, finished with the second most kills on the team with 352 and .36 aces per set, good for third in the SEC. Crow was also selected to the U.S. Collegiate National Team for this summer.
Fellow junior Aubrey Edie also had a great season for Ole Miss. She set the single season assist record at Ole Miss with 1,322, giving her 2,271 assists in her career, which is the third best in Ole Miss history. The team also returns sophomore Lexi Thompson, who set the freshman record at Ole Miss for kills in a season with 323, which was also good for third on the team.
The volleyball team also added a big freshman class in the fall that will be vital for Ole Miss to compete at a high level again.
The signing class includes Laine Carnes from Lexington, South Carolina, Kathryn Cather from Hoover, Alabama, Caroline Adams from Lafayette, Louisiana, Audrey Fischer from Chesterfield, Missouri, Taylor Gill from Madison, Alabama and Alexis Lee from Normal, Illinois. The team also added sophomore Kate Gibson, who transferred from Memphis and is immediately eligible. Gibson starred as a freshman for the Tigers last season, leading the team in kills with 380, adding the second-most aces with 31 and adding the third most digs with 359. Gibson is expected to play right away for the Rebels and should add depth and experience the team.
