Graduate Kate Georgiades is preparing to lead during her fifth season. | Oscar Herrera/The Cougar
Houston volleyball looks to bounce back after losing in the second round of the NCAA tournament last year. The Cougars finished the 2023 season with a 19-10 record overall and an 11-7 record in conference play. Before entering their second consecutive tournament, the Cougars were ranked 24th in the NCAA rankings.
“With a new group coming in, it’s all about trying to find a way to win and using the strengths of our players. I like that we have so much new talent,” head coach David Rehr said. “You’re for sure going to see freshman on the court and you’re going to see a handful of two to three transfers on the court, so it’ll be a fun group to kind of watch.”
Houston star graduate libero Kate Georgiades will be returning to Cougars with great experience and accolades. Georgiades was named Libero of the Year for the 2023 Big 12 Conference, a 2023 All-Big 12 First Team and an AVCA All-American Honorable Mention.
“As a fifth year, you’re tired, you only have so much energy, but I still have to make sure I am leading and being intentional with how I am communicating with my teammates, and with the new pieces we have coming in how can I teach them the system and get them comfortable before preseason,” Georgiades said. “I am trying to expand my range and survey the defense specifically, and just seeing how many courts I can take to alleviate my hitter’s passing duties and help them out.”
In addition to welcoming leadership from familiar faces, Houston added new weapons to the squad ahead of the season.
Graduate outside hitter Angela Grieve joined the Cougars from the University of Miami. The Florida native ranked third on the team with 280 kills and 2.83 kills per set. She led the team with 30 service aces, averaged 0.30 aces per set and earned 50 blocks — 6 solo and 44 block assists.
Senior setter Rebecca Rocassin also brings experience from the state of Florida. During her 2023 season with Jacksonville, Rocassin appeared in every set the Dolphins played. She finished the season with 1,036 assists and a career-high mark of 9.87 per set.
Junior outside hitter Avery Shimatis returned to her hometown after spending her first two seasons with Pepperdine. During her sophomore season, she played nine matches, totaled fourteen sets and recorded 15 kills, including a five-kill season high on Sept. 7 against UCLA.
Another homegrown talent, junior setter Paige Bernstein brought her talents to Houston after spending two seasons with Gardner-Webb. Bernstein led the Runnin’ Bulldogs in assists with 359 during her sophomore season, during which she appeared in 24 of 27 matches.
“We have nine new players, and everyone needs to know how our culture is built and what we expect to implement. We rely on our returning players including graduate setter Annie Cook, senior outsider hitter Katie Corelli and Georgiades who understand what it means to be a Cougar,” Rehr said. “Everyone needs to understand how hard we work.”
The Cougar’s will take on Rice in an exhibition matchup on Aug. 24 at the Fertitta Center. On Aug. 30 they will face Omaha before kicking off conference play with a matchup against Kansas State on Sept. 25.
