The University of Cincinnati Volleyball program is looking to attack the Big 12 ahead of their inaugural season, which is just under one month away from their season opener vs Alabama State. The Bearcats, led by head coach Molly Alvey, who is back for 11th season are prepared to set new standards on the court later this fall after finishing 11-19 (9-11 AAC) a season ago.
The Big 12 conference is coming off an historic season in terms of volleyball, after the Texas Longhorns (28-1) defeated Louisville 3-0 to claim the national championship for the third time in program history. “Obviously the level of talent in the Big 12 is great, I believe for majority of the year, the Big 12 was the number one rated RPI volleyball conference in the country,” said Molly Alvey. “The National Championship came from the Big 12 a season ago, which is a huge deal. In 2021, seven of the nine teams made the NCAA Tournament, while in 2022, five of the nine teams made the NCAA Tournament. You look at creating some new opportunities for your program when you have the level of play in this conference, how exciting is that?”
However, for the Longhorns were led by two-time National Player of the year in Logan Eggleston. Her younger sister, Shaye, a 6′ junior outside hitter, is set to be a key contributor for the Bearcats this season. Eggleston, who began her career at Alabama, set the tone for the Bearcats, after making an immediate impact in 2022 where she recorded 229 kills, 269 digs, 33 aces, 33 blocks, in 108 sets across all 30 matches a season ago.
“I think Shaye is a natural leader, she has a lot of valuable knowledge based off her experience itself,” said Molly Alvey. “She transferred from Alabama in 2022, and she absolutely loves it here at Cincinnati.” She’s a natural leader in her personality, how she sees things on the court and relates to people, she has a lot of innate to leadership abilities.”
The Bearcats Preseason European Tour
Molly Alvey and the Bearcats are getting ready to wrap up offseason workouts, that included a 10 day European tour that took place at the beginning of June. A tour that consisted of six matches featuring some of the top international teams from four different countries, including Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia Italy. “The European tour was amazing; the level of volleyball was tremendous,” said Molly Alvey. “We were really intentional about the places we picked, and tried to find some places these players would never visit on their own. There is really no other experience we could have provided this team in order to get out what they did on that European trip.”
A trip that could provide much insight and experience the Bearcats needed heading into the Big 12, after playing some of the top talent in those respected countries. The Bearcats were provided with an opportunity to go overseas and not only bond as a team but play some of the country’s most competitive teams in the process.
Bearcats bringing veteran presence to the Big 12
Molly Alvey and staff really spent this offseason hitting the transfer portal, welcoming in three big time transfers who have played at some of the biggest universities across the country. Those three additions feature junior setter Katelyn Lefler, graduate outside hitter Jadyn Bauss and graduate libero Carly Skrabak.
Lefler, spent the last two season at Illinois State where she appeared in just 10 matches after missing most the season due to injury. However, Leffler had a tremendous 2021 campaign where she appeared in 28 matches, where she recorded 742 assists as a freshman, which happens to be the 6th most all-time as a freshman in Illinois State history.
Bauss, comes to the Bearcats after spending the last four seasons at SMU. Bauss, racked up a total of 752 kills, 899 digs, 80 service aces during her four year career with the Mustangs. Bauss, was a second team all AAC selection in 2020-2021 during her sophomore campaign as well.
Skrabak, joins the Bearcats after spending her last three seasons at Marquette after starting her career at Tennessee Tech. Skrabak, led the Golden Eagles to its second ever NCAA Sweet Sixteen after a 29-4 (17-1 Big East) season in 2022. Skrabak is slated to be the Bearcats starting libero after former Bearcat Payton Frederick graduate this past Spring. Skrabak recorded 512 digs last season for the Golden Eagles, now for the Bearcats, they are adding one of the best defensive players within the country ahead of the 2023 season.
