DURANT, Okla. – The Southeastern volleyball program returned to Bloomer Sullivan Gym on Monday to kick off its first practice for the upcoming 2026 season.
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"It's always great to have everyone back, and it's definitely nice to see all the new faces with us, with eight freshmen and a transfer," head coach
Nicole Solum-Mitchell said. "We had a great first practice this morning, starting with some conditioning, and they did really well with that, and I loved the competitive energy we had throughout all of practice."
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The Savage Storm return eight players from 2025, highlighted by sophomores
Gabby Jones and
Jasmin Dion, along with senior
Patience Lewis. Both Dion and Jones made an early impact in their first season wearing the blue and gold as the pair started 22 and 19 matches, respectively. Dion paced the side with 684 assists, while Jones racked up 194 kills, averaging 3.07 per set. Lewis returns as the most experienced player on the roster, entering her fifth season, and is one of 14 players in program history to reach 1,000 digs, ranking 12
th all-time with 1,105 entering 2026.
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In addition to the eight returners, Southeastern added nine newcomers in the offseason, with the addition of sophomore transfer
Rylee Jackson from Dallas Baptist and freshmen:
Sophee Dean,
Layla Wilson,
Ariah Perez,
Chloe Davis,
Brooklyn Kiser,
Taylor Pitts,
Candace Jones and
Anger Ngeth.Â
"There's a lot of youth on this team," head coach Solum-Mitchell said. "And so things are always funny and different with eight freshmen, but I think it's a fun group with good personalities and we are excited to see them grow throughout the season."
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SE begins its 2026 campaign at the Southern Invite, hosted by Missouri Southern State on August 27-29 in Joplin, Mo., before heading to the VisitLasVegasNM.com Classic on September 4-5 in Las Vegas, N.M. The Storm's first home match is on Tuesday, Sept. 15 at 6 p.m. when they host rivals East Central in the Bloomer Sullivan Gym.
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