Kentucky volleyball’s Craig Skinner on what coaching team has meant
Kentucky volleyball coach Craig Skinner on what this team has meant to him after losing the national championship game against Texas A&M.
KANSAS CITY, MO — Top-seeded Kentucky volleyball fell to third-seeded Texas A&M in three sets Sunday at T-Mobile Center, ending the Wildcats’ historic season in the NCAA Championship match.
UK finished coach Craig Skinner’s 21st year 30-3. The national title loss ended a 27-match win streak.
Kentucky’s Eva Hudson shares what kept her motivated playing for Cats
The Kentucky Wildcats lost to Texas A&M in the NCAA Volleyball Championship game. Eva Hudson reflects on what kept her motivated with this squad.
Coverage during the match:
Craig Skinner’s UK volleyball team lost to Texas A&M in the NCAA Championship game, but joy from the Kentucky Wildcats‘ journey to the final remains. Read Payton Titus’ instant story from the championship game here.
The Aggies swept the Wildcats for Texas A&M’s first volleyball national championship and the SEC’s second.
Kentucky calls a timeout after a 3-0 Texas A&M scoring run.
The Aggies made quick work of the second set to put themselves one away from a national title. The Wildcats could not get their offense going, hitting -.021 and dragging their overall hitting percentage down to .068. The third set is a must-win for Kentucky.
The start of the second set feels like the reverse of the first. The Aggies are siding out at 100% this set and are the first to make it to 10 points. Skinner calls a timeout to get the Wildcats back in order.
The Wildcats led all set until the Aggies took over 25-24 late in the frame. Texas A&M once trailed by as many as six points. Hudson, Carr and DeLeye each have four kills. Asia Thigpen and Washington have two apiece. Kyndal Stowers for Texas A&M leads all players with five.
The Wildcats came out hot, with eight kills already by four different players (Eva Hudson with three, Lizzie Carr and DeLeye with two and Kennedy Washington with one). UK is hitting .333, while Texas A&M is hitting .059 with just three kills
A Kentucky volleyball spokesperson confirmed to The Courier Journal that Brooklyn DeLeye has been playing with a torn meniscus since the Aug. 31 match against Nebraska. Read more here.
The match is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET.
No. 1 seed Kentucky vs. No. 3 seed Texas A&M will be broadcast on ABC from T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri.
Buy Kentucky volleyball tickets here
Volleyball coaches like UK’s Craig Skinner want more linear TV spots for the NCAA Tournament, specifically the first two rounds, which were broadcast on ESPN+. While folks with the governing body and sports network acknowledge there’s room for improvement, they also warn programming an event with so many matches in a crowded December slate isn’t that simple. Read more here.
Brooklyn DeLeye joined Kentucky volleyball determined to rise to the top. Now, she’s back near her home state and on the brink of an NCAA championship. Read more here.
Read about how UK volleyball coach Craig Skinner’s people-first approach has vaulted the program to sustained national relevance here.
The Wildcats are known for their bench choreography. Read how UK’s sideline antics have helped lead it to the NCAA Volleyball Tournament’s national final here.
Kentucky and Texas A&M volleyball did play this season. UK won 3-1 in College Station, Texas, on Oct. 8.
Today’s national championship is the first all-SEC volleyball final.
It will be the 28th all-time meeting between UK and Texas A&M. The Wildcats are 17-10 against the Aggies, having won the last four matches.
UK volleyball won the 2020 NCAA Tournament, which was played in April 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Wildcats have played in 27 NCAA Tournaments, including this one (1983, 1987-88, 1990, 1992-93, 2005-2025). Twenty-one of those appearances came under Skinner.
UK has made 15 NCAA Regional Semifinals and now two Final Fours. The program has one national championship from the 2020-21 season.
The top-seeded Wildcats will play the third-seeded Texas A&M Aggies in the NCAA Championship today. Here’s a look at the tournament schedule:
- Championship: Dec. 21 at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri
Click here to view the complete bracket.
- Aug. 23: Kentucky 4, Ohio State 0 (exhibition)
- Aug. 30: Kentucky 3, Lipscomb 0
- Aug. 31: Nebraska 3, Kentucky 2
- Sept. 5: Kentucky 3, Penn State 0
- Sept. 6: Kentucky 3, New Hampshire 0
- Sept. 10: Pitt 3, Kentucky 0
- Sept. 13: Kentucky 3, SMU 1
- Sept. 14: Kentucky 3, Houston 0
- Sept. 18: Kentucky 3, Louisville 2
- Sept. 20: Kentucky 3, Washington 0
- Sept. 24: Kentucky 3, South Carolina 0
- Sept. 26: Kentucky 3, Georgia 0
- Oct. 3: Kentucky 3, Ole Miss 0
- Oct. 8: Kentucky 3, Texas A&M 1
- Oct. 12: Kentucky 3, LSU 0
- Oct, 15: Kentucky 3, Auburn 0
- Oct. 19: Kentucky 3, Florida 2
- Oct. 24: Kentucky 3, Mississippi State 1
- Oct. 26: Kentucky 3, Alabama 0
- Oct. 31: Kentucky 3, Vanderbilt 0
- Nov. 2: Kentucky 3, Texas 0
- Nov. 6: Kentucky 3, Missouri 1
- Nov. 9: Kentucky 3, Tennessee 1
- Nov. 14: Kentucky 3, Oklahoma 2
- Nov. 16: Kentucky 3, Arkansas 0
- Nov. 23: Kentucky 3, Auburn 0 (SEC Tournament Quarterfinals)
- Nov. 24: Kentucky 3, Tennessee 1 (SEC Tournament Semifinals)
- Nov. 25: Kentucky 3, Texas 2 (SEC Tournament Final)
- Dec. 4: Kentucky 3, Wofford 0 (NCAA Tournament First Round)
- Dec. 5: Kentucky 3, UCLA 1 (NCAA Tournament Second Round)
- Dec. 11: Kentucky 3, Cal Poly 0 (NCAA Tournament Regional Round)
- Dec. 13: Kentucky 3, Creighton 0 (NCAA Tournament Regional Final)
- Dec. 18: Kentucky 3, Wisconsin 2 (NCAA Tournament National Semifinal)
- Dec. 21: Kentucky vs. Texas A&M (NCAA Tournament Championship)
Click here to see who the Aggies have faced this season.
Kentucky’s 2025 and 2020-21 teams were both crowned SEC champions.
The 2020-21 team went 24-1, dropping one conference match to Florida (3-2) and never losing on its home court.
The 2025 team is 30-2, riding a 27-match win streak dating back to September and encompassing the whole SEC slate as well as every match at Historic Memorial Coliseum.
The Wildcats have won nine consecutive conference titles, which is a Power Four conference volleyball record.
Kentucky volleyball takes a 27-match win streak into the NCAA Championship match after a perfect run in SEC play and at Historic Memorial Coliseum this season.
Craig Skinner’s contract with Kentucky volleyball runs through June 30, 2029. His base salary is as follows:
- July 1, 2022-June 30, 2023: $450,000
- July 1, 2023-June 30, 2024: $475,000
- July 1, 2024-June 30, 2025: $525,000
- July 1, 2025-June 30, 2026: $525,000
- July 1, 2026-June 30, 2027: $525,000
- July 1, 2027-June 30, 2028: $525,000
- July 1, 2028-June 30, 2029: $525,000
Skinner also receives $5,000 per contract year (payable on July 31 and Jan. 31) for “media and endorsement” obligations.
His incentive-based bonuses are not cumulative and include:
- $50,000 for a Final Four berth;
- $75,000 for an NCAA Championship
Yes, UK is spending its 2025-26 revenue-sharing budget on the following sports: football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, baseball, softball and volleyball. The athletics department declined to provide a sport-by-sport spending breakdown when asked by The Courier Journal earlier this year.
Other schools that confirmed to The Courier Journal that they’re spending revenue-sharing dollars on volleyball are:
- Louisville
- Nebraska
- Ohio State
- Minnesota
- Creighton
- BYU
- TCU
- Texas A&M
Hudson and DeLeye are Kentucky’s star outside hitters. DeLeye is a junior and was named the Lexington Regional’s Most Outstanding Player.
Hudson transferred to Kentucky from Purdue for her senior season. She was named to the Lexington Regional All-Tournament Team. Hudson was also awarded SEC Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year.
Both players have been critical for UK’s success all season. They proved especially clutch during the Elite Eight match, combining for 32 of the team’s 47 kills.
- Trinity Ward (DS/Libero, Fr., 5-foot-7)
- Ava Sarafa (Setter, R-So., 6 foot)
- Jordyn Dailey (Middle Blocker/Right Side, R-So., 6-foot-2)
- Kassie O’Brien (Setter, Fr., 6-foot-1)
- Eva Hudson (Outside Hitter, Sr., 6-foot-1)
- Brooke Bultema (Middle Blocker, R-So., 6-foot-3)
- Georgia Watson (Outside Hitter, Fr., 6-foot-3)
- Kennedy Washington (Middle Blocker, So., 6 foot)
- Molly Berezowitz (DS/Libero, Jr., 5-foot-5)
- Molly Tuozzo (DS/Libero, Jr., 5-foot-7)
- Hannah Benjamin (Outside Hitter, R-Fr., 6-foot-1)
- Lizzie Carr (Middle Blocker/Right Side, R-Jr., 6-foot-6)
- Brooklyn DeLeye (Outside Hitter, Jr., 6-foot-2)
- Asia Thigpen (Outside Hitter, So., 5-foot-11)
Click here to see who plays for the Aggies.
Reach college sports enterprise reporter Payton Titus at ptitus@gannett.com and follow her on X @petitus25. Subscribe to her “Full-court Press” newsletter here for a behind-the-scenes look at how college sports’ biggest stories are impacting Louisville and Kentucky athletics.
