Serena Gray Earns Player of the Week Honors with Historic LOVB Opener
The first week of League One Volleyball’s second season featured dominant performances from middle blockers across the league, but among those standout stat lines, Serena Gray’s opening night outing versus Houston was the most remarkable.
She tallied a team second-best 14 kills with no errors in the season-opening match and set a league record along the way. Gray went 14-for-17 for a .824 efficiency, marking the highest rate in LOVB history with a minimum of 15 attempts. She added a team-leading four blocks and kept Houston out of system on every single attempt while recording one ace. After her statement outing, it came as no surprise that she was named the league’s Offensive Player of the Week.
The match started with a nail-biter first set, but Salt Lake took the next two fairly comfortably for the three-set sweep (27-25, 25-19, 25-20).
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Serena Gray was second only to Alexa Gray in the kills department as the Canadian star made her LOVB debut with 18 kills. Claire Hoffman added 10 kills and four digs, while Heydi Casanova recorded five digs, and Tori Dixon added four of her own.
On the other side of the net, 2025 AU champion Jordan Thompson led with 17 kills, and Madi Kingdon Rishel added seven for the second-most on the team.
LOVB Nebraska vs. LOVB Austin
AU Players: Emily Thater, Jaali Winters, Gabby Blossom (Nebraska); Khat Bell, Molly McCage, Bella Bergmark (Austin)
Wednesday’s opener stretched to five sets and featured strong performances from AU middles on both sides of the net. Bella Bergmark tallied seven kills on nine attempts for a .778 efficiency plus two blocks. Molly McCage also added three kills to the effort.
After trading momentum with Nebraska all night, Austin won the five-set showdown 3-2 (22-25, 25-20, 22-25, 25-22, 15-9).
For Nebraska, Emily Thater carried a heavy load in the middle with 16 kills on 26 attempts for a .538 hitting percentage and a team-second-best offensive statline, plus a team-high five blocks. Outside hitter Jaali Winters posted the third-highest offensive output with 12 kills plus 13 digs that tied for a team high.
LOVB Salt Lake vs. LOVB Madison
AU Players: Dani Drews, Madi Haynes, Skylar Fields, Sophie Fischer, Tori Dixon, Alexa Gray, Madi Bugg, Serena Gray, Manami Kojima, Claire Hoffman, Heydi Casanova (Salt Lake); Claire Chaussee, Annayka Legros, Temi Thomas-Ailara (Madison)
Madison kept Salt Lake out of rhythm Saturday, and opposite Temi Thomas-Ailara was a big part of that success with a stat line that included 10 kills and 14 digs. The team managed to walk away with a 3-1 (25-23, 25-15, 25-18) victory to start its season.
Despite the loss, Serena Gray kept the momentum she established in her season-opening match versus Houston and hit .500 with seven kills and no errors on 14 attempts. Alexa Gray added five kills, and Manami Kojima led the squad with 15 digs.
LOVB Houston vs. LOVB Nebraska
AU Players: Jordan Thompson, Justine Wong-Orantes, Madi Kingdon Rishel, Micha Hancock (Houston); Emily Thater, Jaali Winters, Gabby Blossom (Nebraska)
Sunday’s five-set showdown between Houston and Nebraska featured the longest set in LOVB history. Jordan Thompson erupted for 22 kills and added eight digs. Madi Kingdon Rishel added eight kills plus eight digs of her own and three blocks. Micha Hancock split setting duties with Kaisa Alanko and tallied 33 assists plus five digs and an ace, and remained a legitimate offensive threat with three kills.
Despite that collective effort, Houston won the first set before dropping the next two and tried to recover, but Nebraska held on to control long enough to take the 3-2 (22-25, 37-35, 25-19, 21-25, 15-10) win.
LOVB Atlanta vs. LOVB Austin
AU Players: Piyanut Pannoy, Onye Ofoegbu, Tessa Grubbs (Atlanta); Khat Bell, Molly McCage, Bella Bergmark (Austin)
The third five-set match of LOVB’s opening week came between Atlanta and Austin and featured a statement performance from opposite Tessa Grubbs. She started the season with 20 kills and added 10 digs in the effort.
Still, Austin, led by Madisen Skinner’s 16 kills, walked away with the win (21-25, 25-17, 25-17, 17-25, 15-11).
Team Records After Week 1
LOVB Madison: 1-0
LOVB Austin: 2-0
LOVB Nebraska: 1-1
LOVB Salt Lake: 1-1
LOVB Atlanta: 0-1
LOVB Houston: 0-2
Full List of AU Players Competing in LOVB
Siera Jones is the digital media reporter at Athletes Unlimited. You can follow her on Instagram and X @sieraajones.
