Match #33: #3 Texas A&M 3, #1 Kentucky 0
S1: A&M, 26-24; S2: A&M, 25-15; S3: A&M, 25-20
Records: Texas A&M (29-4, 14-1), Kentucky (30-3, 15-0)
Box Score
Maroon & White...and golden!
In just three seasons, Jamie Morrison — a member of three Olympic medal-winning coaching staffs, including two golds — has given Texas A&M volleyball its own golden moment.
For the first time in program history, the Aggies are national champions!
The crowning moment for A&M came on Sunday in a dominant sweep of No. 1 seed Kentucky at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City.
With Morrison leading the way, the Aggies used their experience, balance and star power to go from program legends to something higher.
Immortal.
Built around a senior class of nine and a roster that features four All-Americans, A&M just defeated its third No. 1 seed in as many matches.
First, it was No. 1 overall Nebraska on Dec. 14. Then it was Pittsburgh in Thursday's national semifinal. The Wildcats are just the third and final victim of this Aggie buzzsaw that did not drop a set in the Final Four.
Kentucky star and SEC Player of the Year Eva Hudson still made noise with 13 kills, but the relentless attack of Logan Lednicky, Ifenna Cos-Okpalla, Kyndal Stowers and Morgan Perkins was much louder than the Cats' meow.
An all-time great, Lednicky posted 11 kills in her final match as an Aggie, bringing her career total to 1,686 to rank third in program history.
Dominant at the net for four years, Cos-Okpalla concludes her collegiate career as A&M's all-time leading blocker with 565 after accumulating four stuffs vs. Kentucky.
Stowers, an All-American sophomore, had 10 kills. Emily Hellmuth added 6. Perkins tallied three blocks.
And the unsung hero of it all, Maddie Waak — the maestro of A&M's championship offense — dished out 29 assists.
The combination of star power is officially leaving a legacy that will make Aggies sing.
A banner will surely go up, up, up in the Reed Arena rafters.
These Aggies are golden!