Vanderbilt volleyball is in just its second season of its revival, and the team is already adjusting its goals upward.
Last season, the Commodores came in with a goal of reaching the NCAA Tournament; they finished 9-18 overall and 3-12 in the SEC. But they performed well in the SEC Tournament, defeating Mississippi State and Georgia before their run ended. Afteward, coach Anders Nelson asked his players to rate their happiness on a scale of 1 to 10.
"I couldn't believe how many 7's, 8's and 9's I was hearing," he said.
Losing was new to Nelson, who came from a powerhouse Kentucky program to build something new. But the losing has turned into winning after one offseason. About to start SEC play Sept. 23 (8 p.m. CT, SEC Network) against the same
Wildcats program (7-2) Nelson left, Vanderbilt (9-0) is sitting undefeated and with just three lost sets overall. The marquee win came against North Carolina in New York City, at the time its first ranked win in program history.
"You don't know how your team is going to perform, playing somewhere in something you've never done," Nelson said Sept. 22. "To do it against the biggest team and best team we played, I was just so impressed that our performance met the moment."
Vanderbilt has one of the country's best offenses. It is ranked fourth nationally in hitting percentage, which measures kills minus errors divided by total attempts, and is also fourth in assists per set, sixth in kills per set and ninth in aces per set.
The addition of transfer setter Avery Scoggins, a 2024 All-Big 12 second-team selection at Arizona, has helped unlock Vanderbilt's offense, as have steps forward from outside hitter Reese Animashaun and middle blocker Kayla Dunlap, though Dunlap is currently out indefinitely with an injury.
"We really think this offense is that special," Nelson said. "We have a lot more room to grow. So that's what I'm really excited to see is how it holds up against that physical block tomorrow with Kentucky."
After its last match, a sweep of Lipscomb, Vanderbilt's staff met to recalibrate its goals for the season. Those were revised upward as the Commodores have realized they're better than they thought.
A strong performance in SEC play could propel Vanderbilt to the NCAA Tournament, an impressive feat for a program in its second season of play. The roster-building began in earnest in 2024, when six freshmen and four transfers joined the Commodores and took a redshirt season. Nine of those 10 returned for the first official season in 2025, joined by six more freshmen and two more transfers.
Of the 17 players on the 2025 roster, two transferred out and four graduated, with the other 11 returning, joined by four transfers and two freshmen.
And there's no indication the Commodores are going away. Just two players on the current roster are fifth-years who are out of eligibility after this season.
"The thing I'm probably most proud of is just the growth of our returners, and a lot of our returners that are finding success this year are the ones that chose to start this program from scratch and chose to even come for the redshirt season when we weren't competing, and they were grinding then," Nelson said. "So to see the payoff of some of their work and to see some of the fruits of their labor has been really impressive."
Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: How Vanderbilt volleyball, in second season, is undefeated entering SEC play
