Women’s volleyball opens season with winning record and a fiery duo at Bearkat Invitational

The Lady RedHawks have already made a name for themselves to open the 2026 fall season. The team traveled over 1,000 miles to compete against teams from three separate conferences, building early momentum before Mid-American Conference (MAC) play.

Miami University has a strong attack that relies on its front hitters, keeping opposing defenses on their toes and making matches exciting.

“We have two really good left sides that can score and keep us in every match we’re playing in,” head coach Dan Gwitt said.

Those players are senior outside hitter Chelsea Williams and sophomore outside hitter Molly Creech. Despite the age gap, the two have already formed a bond that will contribute to the team’s chemistry.

“We build off each other, especially in practice,” Creech said. “If I’m having a bad game, hitting wise, Chelsea will take a step up and make up for it and vice versa. We found a way to work together in those moments, especially when we’re down.”

The Miami women’s volleyball team (2-1) traveled to Huntsville, Texas to open its season with the Bearkat Invitational Aug. 28-29. The four-team tournament, hosted by Sam Houston State University Bearkats, also included NCAA Division I opponents McNeese State University Cowgirls and California State University Fullerton Titans.

Miami beat McNeese and Cal State Fullerton, then went toe-to-toe with the eventual tournament winners, Sam Houston State. This combination of dominance and intensity provides hope for an exciting and successful season.

“Everything we do now is going to make us more capable of winning matches in the MAC and getting into the tournament and having the chance to go on a run,” Gwitt said.

Miami vs. McNeese State: Miami, 3-0

For the first time in program history, Miami faced McNeese in volleyball on Saturday, Aug. 28 at 11 a.m. Two comeback sets pushed the team to its first win of the season.

Williams led the team in kills with 17, Creech following close behind with 15. Freshman setter Holland Van Deusen also contributed to the series win, leading the team in assists (19) and digs (13).

“Van Deusen played pretty much every match and every set,” Gwitt said. “She really learned and got better as the weekend went on.”

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Although the RedHawks swept the series, each match came within three points. Clutch kills and resilient finishes sealed the deal from Miami. They closed out the first set scoring the final three points, the final four points in the second and the last four of six points in the third.

Final scores: Miami 26-24, Miami 25-22, Miami 25-22

Miami vs. Sam Houston State: Sam Houston State, 3-2

The RedHawks faced their first setback of the season against the Bearkats at 7 p.m. that same day. After a back-and-forth first set both teams took turns winning sets by six or more points.

“We learned a lot from the Sam Houston match,” Creech said. “It was really good to expose our errors and areas that we need to improve on. We found a way to fight through the matches, and it’s exciting how much growth and improvement we get to make this season.”

While Miami had more aces and the same amount of kills, it was the defensive side that pushed the Bearkats over the edge to take the win and eventually go undefeated in the tournament. The Bearkats had 15 blocks to Miami’s four, led by Sam Houston State junior middle blocker Chelsea Butler with eight.

Creech took the crown for most kills in the match with 17, and Van Duesen continued setting up the team for success with a team-high 21 assists. Freshman libero Rachel Morgan had an impressive 26 digs, surpassing RedHawk and Bearkat players.

“We have a lot of young players that gained a lot of experience this weekend,” Gwitt said.

Final scores: Sam Houston State 29-27, Miami 25-19, Sam Houston State 25-16, Miami 25-18, Sam Houston State 15-11

Miami vs. Cal State Fullerton: Miami, 3-1

The next day, the RedHawks regained their stride, dominating in the final three sets. After the Titans took the first set 25-23, the RedHawks won by seven or more points in each, and went 25-3 in the third set. Creech overpowered opposing players with 20 kills and two aces.

Van Deusen didn’t let her foot off the gas with a team-high 20 assists. The combination of Creech and Van Deusen was good enough to give the RedHawks a smooth victory over the Titans, winning by 22 total points and improving to a respectable 2-1 record before hosting an invitational of their own.

Van Deusen was one of many underclassmen that earned a starting position at the invitational. The team added six freshmen to the 2026 roster and has relied on the youth of the team to stay healthy and continue improving as conference play nears.

“We started the weekend off with three freshmen and four sophomores starting, so we’re going to keep getting better as the season goes on,” Gwitt said. “I thought we took a lot of positive things out of the first weekend.”

Last season, the RedHawks fell to the University of Toledo Rockets 3-2 in the MAC championship match. The team was just two points away from a Championship win in the fourth set. This season, the team is looking toward gold.

“We don’t just want to get to the tournament, we want to win the tournament,” Williams said. “This tournament gave us a lot of confidence, and a lot of the things we need to fix are tangible.”

Miami continues its season hosting the Miami/Best Western Invitational from Sept. 4-5 and then traveling to Alabama for the I Support The Athletics Program (ISTAP) Collegiate Cup from Sept. 11-12.

younggm7@miamioh.edu