Volleyball Lands Transfer Samantha Sanders

LUBBOCK, Texas – Following another successful season under head coach Tony Graystone, the Texas Tech volleyball team gained a powerful asset with the signing of junior transfer Samantha Sanders on Thursday, Jan. 2.

"We're very happy about Sam joining us and can't wait to get started with her in January," Graystone said. "She's got a great makeup and I think she's going to be an excellent fit with our group. On the court, Sam has everything we're looking for and I'm excited to see where she can make an impact."

Sanders competed in three seasons at Texas A&M, where she registered 265 kills and 54 blocks in 162 sets.

The outside hitter appeared in 34 sets as a junior for the Aggies where she collected 40 kills. She posted a season-best eight kills at No. 25 Louisville and put down three kills against Fairfield for a .286 hitting percentage. Sanders came off the bench and threw up three blocks against Alabama in the Aggies' SEC opener on Sept. 24. She registered four kills and a block against Arkansas and logged five kills and one block at LSU.

After having appeared in only one match over the first nine contests as a sophomore, Sanders saw action in 18 consecutive matches, seeing action on both the left and right sides. She made her first appearance and her first start of the season in the eighth match of the 2018 against Nicholls and recorded a career-high 14 kills as well as a season-high 14 points at No. 25 Tennessee. Sanders posted double-digit kills five times throughout the season and recorded 10 or more points eight times.

In her first season as an Aggie, she appeared in 20 of 25 matches and 58 of 88 sets. Sanders made her career debut and her first career start against VCU on Aug. 26. Starting in 11 matches, she spent 10 at opposite hitter and one at outside hitter. Sanders led A&M and tied for match-high honors with a career-high 13 kills in the 3-1 win against Auburn on Oct. 15. She posted double-digit kills twice in 2017, including 10 kills while hitting .526 against Lipscomb on Sept. 8 in the first double-digit kill performance of her career. Sanders averaged 1.50 kills and 1.80 points per set while hitting .147 for the full season and hit .144 and averaged 1.67 kills and 1.97 points per set in SEC action.

A native of Waco, Texas, Sanders was a four-year starter and a two-year team co-captain for coach Ryan Porter at Midway High School. She saw action at both outside hitter and middle blocker and was a four-time all-district first-team selection as well as a four-time member of the academic all-district team. As a senior, she earned an Under Armour All-American Honorable Mention nod. She also earned district Offensive Player of the Year honors for the second consecutive year. She was named to the Waco Tribune-Herald Super Centex first team as a senior, junior and sophomore and earned honorable mention as a freshman. Sanders played club volleyball for Texas Advantage Volleyball. Sanders was named to the 18s Open Division all-tournament team at the 2017 USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championship after leading TAV to a silver medal. She played 15s for Waco Juniors and won the American Division at the 2014 USAV GJNC and was named to the all-tournament team.

Texas Tech finished the season with a 17-13 overall record and a 7-9 mark in Big 12 Conference play. Tech finished fifth in the league, which is the Red Raiders' highest finish in the Big 12 in program history. For all the latest information on the Texas Tech volleyball team, visit TexasTech.com or follow @TexasTechVB on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Volleyball Lands Transfer Samantha Sanders

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