Big 12 Announces Preseason Volleyball Accolades
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IRVING, Texas – Baylor volleyball had two student-athletes named Preseason All-Big 12 while earning Preseason Freshman of the Year for the second-consecutive season, the league announced Tuesday.
Kyndal Stowers earned Co-Preseason Freshman of the Year alongside Texas’ Ella Swindle, while Averi Carlson and Allie Sczech were named Preseason All-Big 12.
Stowers, an outside hitter from Denton, Texas, is the second Bear in a row to earn the honor, Carlson having earned it for the 2022 season. Stowers finished her prep career at Guyer HS with well over 1,000 kills and more than 90 aces and was named the No. 1 player out of the state by PrepDig.com while being the No. 16 recruit in the nation according to PrepVolleyball.com. Stowers was named AVCA Second Team All-America, VolleyballMag High School Honorable Mention All-American and Under Armour All-American. She played the spring 2023 season with Baylor as an early-enrollee.
Carlson was a unanimous pick for the preseason team, having earned Big 12 Freshman of the Year and being named First Team All-Big 12 and All-Big 12 Rookie team the previous season. The setter from Lucas, Texas, amassed 1,258 assists in her first year with 30 aces and 35 kills. She recorded eight double-doubles over the season and had a season-high 54 assists twice. She had 31 matches with double-digit assists and eight with double-digit digs.
Sczech, an opposite out of Sugarland, Texas, earns a preseason spot after finishing her first campaign with the Bears with 230 kills, 57 digs and 105 total blocks. Sczech was named All-Big 12 Second Team as well as All-Big 12 Rookie Team in 2022. She had seven matches with double-digit kills and led the team in blocks six times. She recorded a season-high 13 kills twice and was named Big 12 Rookie of the Week after the league-opening match with TCU.
The Bears will open the 2023 season on the road for the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge in Minneapolis, Minn., on Aug. 25-26. The first home match for BU will be against Rice on Sept. 1.
The Big 12 announced on Monday that Baylor was picked to finish third in the league by the coaches. It was the seventh-consecutive season the Bears have been picked within the top three.
The preseason poll, team and awards were voted on by the league’s head coaches who are not permitted to vote for their own players or rank their own team.
Fans interested in purchasing tickets for the upcoming Baylor Volleyball season can visit BaylorBears.com/Tickets. All seats are general admission for volleyball in the Ferrell Center.
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