KINGSVILLE, Texas (November 7, 2026) – The University of Texas Permian Basin volleyball team lost 3-0 (25-20, 25-8, 25-18) at Texas A&M University-Kingsville on the final day of its 2026 season.
UTPB (9-14 overall, 4-13 Lone Star Conference) was held to -0.008 percent hitting (19 kills, 20 errors) for the match while TAMUK (18-10, 11-6) hit an extremely effective .224 percent (43 kills, 13 errors).
Highlighting the Falcons' statistical performances were
Kyndall Torres with a season-high 19 digs,
Kierra Freeman with her sixth-straight double-double (15 assists, 10 digs) to end the season,
Precious Johnson with five blocks (all block assists; four in the first set) in her final match,
Nickilah Whatley with four service aces in her final match (keeping her among the top-four in the LSC), and freshman
Addison Parks leading the team in kills (7) for the second match in a row.
In the opening set, UTPB led 6-2 after a kill by Parks, an ace by Whatley and another kill by Parks, led 9-3 after a block assist by Johnson and Parks, and led 12-6 after a block assist by Johnson and
Giselle Orellana. However, UTPB could not hold off a furious 14-2 rally for the Javelinas starting with four straight attack errors by the Falcons. That made it 21-15 Javelinas before UTPB got to within three (22-19) on a kill by Johnson followed by an assisted block from Johnson and
Makenna Grimes, but a kill by TAMUK's Karrington Crawford made it 23-19 before her second kill in a span of four points ended the set at 25-20.
UTPB led 6-3 in the third set on an ace by
Isabel Rodriguez and later led 10-8 after the second kill in a span of three points by Orellana, but again it was a big run for TAMUK, this time a 13-3 run to make it 21-13 Javelinas.
The Falcons limited Cambelle Brammer, who sits in the top-six in the LSC in kills, to only five kills on 26 swings (.038 percent) in the Javelinas' regular-season finale. UTPB, however, could not contain 2025 Second-Team All-LSC selection Natalee Rush (TAMUK's Offensive and Defensive Player to Watch this season), who totaled 13 kills and hit .440 percent on 25 swings.
TAMUK is set to return to the LSC Tournament this season after falling in the quarterfinals a year ago and finishing out the year with a 18-10 overall record and a 10-7 record in conference play. The Javelinas earned the eighth seed in the LSC Tournament last year, were picked to finish eighth in the LSC Preseason Poll this year, but instead finished tied for fifth place in the conference standings after winning their first five conference games of the year and starting 8-1 in league play.
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