Rice Owls go undefeated in Conference USA, enter playoffs as top seed

The Rice University Owls have dominated the volleyball court for two straight seasons and the Owls are back in the title hunt going into the Conference USA Championship as the No. 1 seed.

The Conference USA Championship is from Nov. 19-21 and is being hosted by Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia.

“Rice (17-5, 12-0) will face Charlotte (12-12, 5-7) in the opening round on Friday, Nov. 19 at 11 a.m. (CT),” Kenny Bybee of riceowls.com wrote. “The Owls and 49ers did not face each other this season and last played in the semi-finals of last season's C-USA Championship, which Rice swept 3-0.”

Recently riceowls.com reported that the Owls beat the University of Texas-San Antonio in three straight sets to complete a perfect season in Conference USA. The first set was won 25-15, with Shannon Lennon posting six kills. Set two was a dominating 25-13 win where the team hit .333 offensively, including five more kills by Lennon. The third set was a 25-19 victory, highlighted by a 7-2 run to end the game. 

Leading the way was Lennon, who had 15 kills and 13 digs in what was her 13th double-double of the season. This was her last regular season game at the Tudor Fieldhouse. 

Junior setter Carly Graham had a solid day with 30 assists and 14 digs, to go along with five blocks. Sahara Maruska had 12 kills in a nice offensive contribution. 

Defensively Nia McCardell and Elisabeth LaBue had 14 digs each. The defense has been strong all season, and the win was the eighth time Rice’s opponents have had a hitting percentage of less than 20%.

Head Coach Genny Volpe was very happy with the team and her coaching staff following the win, saying they have been working hard in practice to improve, which carried over to the court on game day.

“We talk all year about being the best versions of ourselves and constantly striving to improve and this group has really embraced that,” Volpe said.

This is the second straight year the Owls have been undefeated in conference play. The team has its sights set on its third Conference USA Championship in school history. The Owls won the title the last two years.