Tiana Meza | THE RIDER
After being chosen to finish second in the preseason poll on Aug. 14, the UTRGV Volleyball Team prepares to take on the Southland Conference, but first must take on more than 10 competitors before its Sept. 23 conference battle.
Following last season’s Southland Championship bout, UTRGV volleyball had its first practice and news conference for the 2026 season Aug. 3, where it discussed digging into offense and plans for the upcoming season.
Head coach Todd Lowery, who received Coach of the Year honors last season, said he does not feel pressure for the team to repeat as regular-season champions, nor is it part of its “expectations or goals” and are rather taking it day by day to grow and be the best version of itself.
“Obviously, we want to win every match, but we’re taking the regular season as an opportunity to really grow and get better,” Lowery said. “Maybe takes a little bit of pressure off than having that pressure to go out and win every single night to win a regular-season title.”
Besides Lowery, many of this year’s juniors and seniors have been recognized individually as of the 2025 season, including senior defensive specialist Isa Bento who was awarded the Iron V accolade, and junior outside hitter Martina Franco who was awarded Newcomer of the Year.
The Iron V is a UTRGV award given to student athletes who demonstrate excellence in their hard work and dedication in their respective sports through strength and conditioning. Bento said she personally believes she was awarded the Iron V due to her attitude and constant words of encouragement to her fellow Vaqueros.
Tiana Meza | THE RIDER
“My sophomore year, I worked really hard to get it, like, I always push the team, I say, ‘I’m not the most muscular and strongest,’” she said. “I’m strong, but I might not be the strongest of the team, but I feel like my attitude is something that helps a lot, because I cheer everybody up, and I always want to push them, too, because, like, [Franco], for example, right here by my side, she’s super strong. I’m like, ‘Yeah, let’s go, Marty!’”
As for Franco, who transferred from the University of Texas at San Antonio to UTRGV last year, she recounted seeing she had been awarded Newcomer of the Year while having just landed from a flight to a tournament last season.
“I was so happy; it was like a reward for everything you do,” she said.
The Vaqueros also are expecting new changes for this year’s plays, mainly focusing on strengthening their defense and digging into offense.
“[The team] touches a lot of balls but doesn’t exactly convert them into offense,” Lowery said. “So, it’s been something that’s just kind of been our focus about the location of where we dig the ball to and making sure that we’re digging the ball in the center of the court.”
The head coach added the Vaqueros have trained hard for the Southland Conference and with the hopes of qualifying for the NCAA championship in December.
The Vaqueros will participate in the Islanders Classic at 3:30 p.m. against Texas State Friday in Corpus Christi.
