There’s no hiding Molly Phillips. In any case, she is 6-foot-4.
However all through her profession, she’s all the time been the Texas volleyball X issue, the participant who perhaps you merely didn’t discover as a lot over the previous 4 years, the silent assassion who has performed alongside the likes of All-Individuals Logan Eggleston and Brionne Butler and Skylar Fields and Asjia O’Neal.
“She doesn’t get sufficient credit score,” O’Neal stated. “She carries that effectively and nonetheless works extraordinarily exhausting and doesn’t let it get to her. I believe she deserves far more flowers than she will get. I really like having her as a teammate.”
That’s not misplaced on coach Jerritt Elliott.
“I believe there are gamers on every crew that aren’t closely scouted or undervalued within the opponents’ scouting report at instances, and Molly’s a type of gamers that when you don’t take note of her, she will actually damage you,” Elliott stated.
“And he or she’s been that method for a very long time.”
The numbers show it. As Texas went 28-1 final season and 15-1 within the Huge 12, en path to successful the NCAA championship, there was the aforementioned Eggleston, the VolleyballMag.com two-time nationwide participant of the 12 months (407 kills, 4.28/set); Kentucky switch Madisen Skinner (344 kills, 3.66); and O’Neal, who spent her spring and summer season with the USA nationwide crew in Volleyball Nations League (208 kills, 2.21/set).
After which there was Phillips, who had 200 kills (2.25/set) and second solely to O’Neal with a .381 hitting proportion. Phillips was additionally fourth in blocks with 63. She has an uncanny knack for arising with key kills at massive instances and hits a cross-court angle that’s vicious.
“She’s the overall bundle,” Elliott stated. “She’s acquired an incredible work ethic, she’s an incredible teammate, and he or she loves being in class, which is even higher.”
Had COVID not offered an additional 12 months, she’d be accomplished, “which I’m glad I’m not,” Phillips stated with amusing, “as a result of that could be a scary, scary thought.”
Texas, ranked No. 1 within the AVCA preseason ballot, will rely closely as soon as once more on Phillips, the product of Mansfield, Texas (about 30 miles southwest of Dallas), the place she performed membership volleyball for Texas Picture with TCU stellar outdoors Audrey Nalls and Kentucky center Azhani Tealer.
“Molly’s a type of folks you possibly can depend on for something,” O’Neal stated. “She’s extraordinarily selfless and actually caring and particularly as a high-level athlete who has achieved as a lot as she has — I believe that claims quite a bit.
“There are such a lot of various personalities relating to athletics. So for her to be that down-to-earth, actually caring one that would do something for anybody else is a blessing to have as a pal. And he or she’s a type of folks I do know I’ll be buddies with my complete whole life. And I’ve subsequent 12 months to play along with her and it’s going to be actually enjoyable.”
As you’d anticipate from the tallest woman within the class, Phillips performed basketball.
“However we moved to Mansfield and all my buddies performed volleyball and I needed spend extra time with my buddies,” she stated. “I went to a volleyball follow. My dad took me, and he stated, ‘You understand, you’re form of good at this factor. You may play that, too.’ ”
She acquired good in a rush and by the point she was a freshman in highschool, basketball was a factor of the previous.
“The recruiting course of picked up fairly quick and livid and I didn’t even know what highschool was but,” Phillips recalled. “I used to be attempting to determine the place I needed to go to school and hadn’t even gone to a highschool class. It was bizarre. I’m glad they modified the (NCAA recruiting) guidelines.”
She knew about Texas, having visited the campus to observe a cousin who performed soccer for the Longhorns. Her dad and mom each went to Abilene Christian in Texas, so, in contrast to many Texans, didn’t have burnt orange in her veins. However after additionally contemplating Nebraska, Minnesota and TCU, she selected Texas.
“I all the time had massive targets however I didn’t know the place that might take me,” Phillips stated.
Phillips, a VolleyballMag.com fourth-team All-American final season, got here in with Skylar Fields, who grew to become Texas nice earlier than transferring to USC.
“We recruited her as a center,” Elliott stated. “And we had been short-handed on the fitting facet, so we gave her some seems on the proper facet. She was all the time that participant who wasn’t probably the most explosive or dynamic or greatest within the health club, however she had a really excessive volleyball IQ.
“And he or she was all the time prepared to place within the work to wash up her recreation. We put her over there and it one thing that was actually distinctive and particular.”
Maybe, however Phillips thought she’d get redshirted her first 12 months. An early damage to All-American center Brionne Butler created a necessity and Phillips was on the ground.
“I acquired thrown in there. That was fairly enjoyable and actually thrilling,” Phillips recalled. “It was a whirlwind. When Bri got here again I labored on being a blocking sub.”
That 12 months, 2019, Texas went 23-4, 15-1, getting upset at residence by Louisville within the NCAA’s second spherical. Phillips was a non-factor.
The following season, the spring 2021 COVID season, Texas completed 27-2, 16-0, and misplaced within the NCAA title match to Kentucky, which included Skinner, then a freshman, and Tealer. Phillips had a well-known Phillips stat line: eight kills with two errors in 18 assaults (.333), as help, three blocks and two digs.
In 2021, Texas (27-2, 15-1) misplaced within the regional remaining to Nebraska. Phillips grinded with one kill and one error in 13 assaults to go together with a match-high six blocks and a dig.
Which introduced the Longhorns to 2022. Fields left for the West Coast, however Skinner transferred to Texas. So did UCLA libero Zoe Fleck and Cal center Bella Bellmark and DS Keonilei, who had seven aces in opposition to Texas in that match the earlier season in opposition to Nebraska.
It went seamlessly.
“This was probably the most enjoyable I’ve ever had with a crew,” Phillips stated. “All of us simply liked coming within the health club and being with one another and we frolicked a lot outdoors of volleyball. I believe that helped. We actually liked being round one another and that’s exhausting to do with 18 ladies for an entire whole season — it may possibly actually be unattainable — and we did it. We actually had no drama and no points. Everybody was simply so enjoyable to be round.”
It didn’t should be that method, not with big-time transfers like Skinner and Fleck.
“I spoke on senior night time to our crew and the dad and mom had been there and I stated one thing alongside the strains of we had so many transfers and it’s really easy for transfers to come back in and be like, ‘I solely have one 12 months, I’m simply going to do it they method I’ve all the time accomplished it,’ and no one did that,” Phillips stated. “Everyone got here in and tailored to our tradition and acquired into what we had been doing. And I believe that speaks volumes, as a result of it’s exhausting to do, to come back in and completely change what you’ve accomplished for 4 years. However that’s what they did.”
And what Texas did was go 28-1, 15-1 within the Huge 12, the lone loss coming in 5 at Iowa State on October 19, a shocking consequence for a crew that earlier that season beat Ohio State twice, Minnesota, Stanford, Houston and Baylor.
Someway Phillips knew that in 2012, the final time Texas gained all of it, 10 years earlier, these Longhorns additionally had only one convention loss — in 5 at Iowa State.
There was no panic. Texas gained its subsequent 10 Huge 12 matches, together with a house sweep of Iowa State.
And the Huge 12 season completed every week sooner than the opposite main conferences.
“We acquired fortunate with our schedule. We had an entire week to coach and we acquired to take a break from that recreation atmosphere and simply get higher,” Phillips stated. “It was like a reset for us. We acquired that weekend off and we had been in a position to decompress slightly bit after which dive into the event. That was actually helpful.”
And the theme?
“We educated actually exhausting for these 5 days and labored on issues that we would have liked to get higher at,” Phillips stated. “Now we have an offense. We knew that. However we needed to get higher defensively and by the tip of the 12 months we needed to be the very best defensive crew within the nation. We knew that once we acquired to the powerful video games on the finish that if we needed to win, that’s how we had been going to do it.”
Texas, taking part in at residence for the primary 4 matches, swept Fairleigh Dickinson (Phillips had six kills with one error in 13 assaults) after which Georgia (6-0-13) the primary weekend. Then they beat Marquette (8-1-18, three blocks) in 4 and Ohio State (5-1-12, six blocks) in 4.
Phillips’ hitting numbers had been unimaginable — 25 kills with three errors in 56 swings in 4 matches.
“She sees house at a extremely excessive stage,” Elliott stated. “She’s acquired nice command of the ball and has the photographs, and he or she is aware of play with depth, which not quite a lot of younger gamers know do. She’ll damage you as a result of she has the flexibility to place the ball the place she desires to.”
It was on to Omaha — in the identical enviornment through which it misplaced to Kentucky two seasons earlier — for the nationwide semifinals. Phillips knew the historical past, that within the earlier decade the Longhorns had been additionally shut however by no means gained.
Stress?
‘Yeah, I believe the thought that we have to win is all the time there. Not even must. We need to. We need to convey it again to this college. That’s why you come right here, we now have that custom and that identify. We don’t come right here to lose.”
San Diego gave the Longhorns all they may deal with earlier than Texas gained 26-28, 25-16, 25-18, 25-20. Phillips had 14 kills with 5 errors in a season-high 34 assaults, a block and two digs.
Two days later, as they headed into the championship match in opposition to Louisville, “We had been actually unfastened, assured and comfy. Jerritt stated that in serve and move.”
In a traditional instance of the cliche that it was nearer than the rating signifies, Texas beat Louisville 25-22, 25-14, 26-24. Phillips had six kills with one error in 16 swings and two blocks.
She acquired two of her kills within the first set, together with the primary Texas level of the match after Louisville took a 3-0 lead. She acquired the primary level of the second set after which one late.
Within the third set, Phillips had kills for the primary two factors.
The set was tied at 24 when Akana subbed for Phillips. Eggleston acquired a kill after which Akana had a walk-off ace to win the nationwide title.
“We lastly did it and there was this sigh of aid,” Phillips admitted. “It was form of bittersweet. Usually once you undergo a season with a crew you lose and it’s accomplished. There’s a purpose the season is over. However we didn’t lose, and I used to be like, ‘Who will we play now?’ It was form of bizarre being accomplished on a win.
“It feels nice, you need to finish on a win, but it surely was the weirdest feeling.”
It gave Texas a document of 105-9, 61-3 in Huge 12, for her time in Austin.
When this season ends in December, Phillips will probably transfer on. She desires to pursue seashore volleyball and has graduate-student eligibility.
“I hope that’s what I do long-term,” Phillips stated, including that she additionally gained’t rule out taking part in professionally indoors, too. For that matter, she’s joined the League One Volleyball crew, so she would have that as a home professional choice.
She additionally has an endorsement cope with simplyFUEL Protein Balls.
“Molly is an absolute gem of a human and the whole lot you possibly can need in a accomplice to characterize your model,” stated Mitzi Dulan of SimpyFUEL. “After I discovered she liked my simplyFUEL Protein Balls, I had a Zoom assembly along with her and it was a no brainer that I needed to make it occur. 
“She’s an apparent queen on the courtroom and a nationwide champion, however I’ve been tremendous impressed along with her stage of professionalism at such a younger age with our partnership. We not too long ago did a video/photograph shoot in Austin and he or she completely crushed it.”
Chances are high there shall be much more endorsements coming her method. Texas is loaded and ranked No. 1 for good purpose, regardless of shedding Eggleston and Fleck.
The Longhorns make a journey to California to open the season at Lengthy Seaside State and Saturday at Loyola Marymount after which head to No. 7 Minnesota on August 29.
All of which units up the showcase match of the pre-conference season when No. 3 Stanford visits Austin on September 3, a Sunday-morning affair that shall be proven on ESPN2.
Gregory Health club, the 4,000-seat excellent on-campus volleyball facility, shall be rocking.
“I really like how a lot Austin loves volleyball.,” Phillips stated. “There are quite a lot of cities which can be like that, however Austin is so massive and there’s quite a bit occurring and other people nonetheless love volleyball. It’s superior.”