Texas Tech University Athletics
Texas Tech Volleyball Begins Fall Practice
August 09, 2016 | Women's Volleyball
The Red Raiders kicked off two-a-days in preparation for the 2016 season.
LUBBOCK, Texas -Â Texas Tech volleyball held its first practice of the 2016 season on Tuesday at the United Supermarkets Arena after months of anticipation to get back on the court for organized team activity.
The start of fall practices signals 18 days from the start of the season, when the Red Raiders will travel to Portland, Oregon, for the Portland State Tournament. Head Coach Tony Graystone expressed to the media the excitement he and the rest of the team had about returning the court to start two-a-days.
"This is the best day of the year for a coaching staff," Graystone said. "You get all of the planning done and out of the way, and now it's time to get at it, see what the players are bringing back from their summer workouts and start to put the plan into action."
Texas Tech returns 10 student-athletes from last year's squad, including seniors Lauren Douglass and Marguerite Grubb. Douglass is coming off a spectacular season in 2015, when she led the team in kills (280), kills per set (2.95), hitting percentage (.377), solo blocks (19), assisted blocks (70) and total blocks (89). Her totals earned her All-Big 12 honors for the second-straight year, as well as All-Southwest Region accolades by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). Grubb also put together a strong junior season, tallying 1,007 assists to become the first Red Raider since 2013 to record 1,000 assists in a single season. She comes into 2016 needing only 21 assists to crack the school's all-time top 10 list in the category.Â
Douglass, a 2016 Preseason All-Big 12 honoree, knew Graystone from her high school playing days and has already noticed a change in the team's mindset heading into fall practices.
"I think Coach Graystone has created a really good culture, a positive one," Douglass said. "He has lots of expectations for us and a solid base and consequences for us if we don't meet those expectations. He's been really consistent with what he's trying to instill in the program. Our work etchic has been a lot more consistent and we try to meet his expectations because we have a lot of faith in him."
Texas Tech also welcomes in 11 new faces to the program, including nine freshmen. Sophomore Outside Hitter Sarah Redding, who racked up 173 kills in 28 sets last season, said she and the rest of the team were eager to get back on the court and begin the 2016 season.
"We've all been talking about and buzzing about two-a-days," Redding said. "There were a little bit of nerves and a little bit of excitement because we haven't been through two-a-days with Coach Graystone. But we went through offsesaon with him and loved what we saw, so we're hungry and ready to go get this season started."
The Red Raiders will hold their annual Red/Black Scrimmage on Saturday, Aug. 20, at 6 p.m. in the practice gym of the United Supermarkets Arena.
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The start of fall practices signals 18 days from the start of the season, when the Red Raiders will travel to Portland, Oregon, for the Portland State Tournament. Head Coach Tony Graystone expressed to the media the excitement he and the rest of the team had about returning the court to start two-a-days.
"This is the best day of the year for a coaching staff," Graystone said. "You get all of the planning done and out of the way, and now it's time to get at it, see what the players are bringing back from their summer workouts and start to put the plan into action."
Texas Tech returns 10 student-athletes from last year's squad, including seniors Lauren Douglass and Marguerite Grubb. Douglass is coming off a spectacular season in 2015, when she led the team in kills (280), kills per set (2.95), hitting percentage (.377), solo blocks (19), assisted blocks (70) and total blocks (89). Her totals earned her All-Big 12 honors for the second-straight year, as well as All-Southwest Region accolades by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). Grubb also put together a strong junior season, tallying 1,007 assists to become the first Red Raider since 2013 to record 1,000 assists in a single season. She comes into 2016 needing only 21 assists to crack the school's all-time top 10 list in the category.Â
Douglass, a 2016 Preseason All-Big 12 honoree, knew Graystone from her high school playing days and has already noticed a change in the team's mindset heading into fall practices.
"I think Coach Graystone has created a really good culture, a positive one," Douglass said. "He has lots of expectations for us and a solid base and consequences for us if we don't meet those expectations. He's been really consistent with what he's trying to instill in the program. Our work etchic has been a lot more consistent and we try to meet his expectations because we have a lot of faith in him."
Texas Tech also welcomes in 11 new faces to the program, including nine freshmen. Sophomore Outside Hitter Sarah Redding, who racked up 173 kills in 28 sets last season, said she and the rest of the team were eager to get back on the court and begin the 2016 season.
"We've all been talking about and buzzing about two-a-days," Redding said. "There were a little bit of nerves and a little bit of excitement because we haven't been through two-a-days with Coach Graystone. But we went through offsesaon with him and loved what we saw, so we're hungry and ready to go get this season started."
The Red Raiders will hold their annual Red/Black Scrimmage on Saturday, Aug. 20, at 6 p.m. in the practice gym of the United Supermarkets Arena.
Â
And we're back! #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/HaHKzScq7w
— TexasTech Volleyball (@TTUVball) August 9, 2016
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
SET
/ Women's Volleyball
RS
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