Texas volleyball, ranked No. 2 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, continued its grueling nonconference schedule with a matchup against No. 4 Louisville Wednesday in Fort Worth. Just like they did against Stanford Sunday at Moody Center, the Longhorns rallied for a five-set win.
Austin, TX
Replay, highlights: No. 2 Texas volleyball beats No. 4 Louisville in 5 sets
The Texas Longhorns celebrate a score during the match against Stanford at the Moody Canter on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025 in Austin.
Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-StatesmanTorrey Stafford paced the Longhorns (5-0) with 20 kills and 18 digs while freshman phenom fired a career-high 16 kills. Freshman Abby Vander Wal added 14 kills, including the game-winner in the 23-25, 25-16, 21-25, 25-22, 16-14 victory. Ella Swindle tallied 37 assists.
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Emma Halter (17 digs, eight assists), Rella Binney (10 digs, seven assists) and Ramsey Gary (12 digs, five assists) anchored a ferocious backrow effort that helped the Longhorns overcome 35 attacking errors, the most in at least 15 years for Texas.
Peyton Petersen paced Louisville (4-1) with 18 kills.
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Read below for a replay and highlights from Texas volleyball’s win over Louisville.
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Texas Longhorns outside hitter Cari Spears (23) spikes the ball during the match against Stanford at the Moody Canter on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025 in Austin.
Three days after rallying from a five-point deficit in the fifth set against Stanford, Texas does it again. The Longhorns fend off a match point and come back from an 11-6 deficit in the fifth set and win it on a kill by freshman Abby Vander Wal.
The Longhorns are on a 6-1 run, and Louisville takes its final timeout. Another five-set thriller for No. 2 Texas. An amazing defensive sequence by Rella Binney and Ramsey Gary a few points ago gave the Longhorns the juice they needed.
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Texas has 33 attacking errors compared to 58 kills, which is the most errors by a Texas squad in at least 15 years. The Longhorns will have to clean things up quick to pull off another rally.
The Longhorns are playing in their second consecutive five-setter after edging Stanford Sunday at Moody Center, but Louisville is the team looking most comfortable in a taut fifth set. Seventeen blocks for Louisville, and the Cardinals are hitting .400 this set compared to .132 for Texas.
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Freshman Cari Spears has a career-high 15 kills for Texas, and you never know where she’ll pop up in attack. Pin, back row, middle, she’s firing from everywhere. Torrey Stafford adds 17 digs and 16 kills, including a set-winning rocket. Match tied at 2-2.
Texas is trying to close strong, but Louisville coach Dan Meske is trying to win a fourth challenge on a tip call. Louisville leads 2-1.
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A set of runs, this. Louisville reeled off a 7-0 spurt to erase a 4-0 Texas lead, but the Longhorns respond with an 8-1 run capped by Ayden Ames winning a joust. Ames has five total blocks for Texas. Louisville leads 2-1.
The Cardinals have set a season-high 14 blocks, and they keep answering every Texas challenge – literally, too, since Louisville has won three coach’s challenges. They’re on a 7-0 run. Louisville leads 2-1.
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A solo block and a block assist from Texas middle Nya Bunton, and the Longhorns jump out to a quick start in a do-or-die set. Timeout, Louisville. Louisville leads 2-1.
A tight replay goes Louisville’s way, and the Cardinals are one set away from handing Texas its first loss. Peyton Petersen of Louisville and Torrey Stafford of Texas are tied for match-high honors with 13 kills, but the Cardinals have committed five fewer attacking errors in a high-error match. Louisville leads 2-1.
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The Cardinals are answering any questions about their mettle after an easy opening schedule, but the Longhorns have just fended off three set points. The two teams are tied at 1-1.
Peyton Petersen slices her 13th kill down the left sideline for Louisville, and the Cardinals are on a 5-0 run. Timeout, Texas coach Jerritt Elliott. The two teams are tied at 1-1.
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An alley-oop dunk on a fast break. A 6-4-3 double play. A back-row attack, like Cari Spears just did for her ninth kill. These are elegant sports things. The two teams are tied at 1-1.
A pair of one-armed stabs by Torrey Stafford keeps a rally alive, and it leads to a rare hitting error by Louisville. High-level volleyball in Cowtown, Panther City, Funky Town, whatever you want to call Fort Worth. The two teams are tied at 1-1.
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Back-to-back blocks from Louisville, and the Cardinals are trying to claim grab their first lead of the third set. The two teams are tied at 1-1.
Louisville closes to within 22-16, but a big block from Ella Swindle and five kills in the set from Torrey Stafford help Texas rebound from dropping its first opening set of the season. We’re even at 1-1.
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Texas is firing on all cylinders right now. Torrey Stafford is up to a match-high nine kills, Devin Kahahawai keeps playing solid minutes off the bench, and the Longhorn block is starting to slow Louisville go-to attacker Peyton Petersen, who has just two of her nine kills 9 kills this set. Louisville leads 1-0.
Louisville has used its last timeout of the set as the Longhorns stay hot. Cari Spears and Torrey Stafford are leading the onslaught with seven and six kills, respectively. Spears also has three blocks, and Nya Bunton has four blocks for the Longhorns.
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Set two: Texas 8, Louisville 3
Texas doesn’t want another slow start. Freshman OH Cari Spears is up to seven kills, including a thunderous shot off Louisville’s Hannah Kenny, and classmate Abby Vander Wal is making a big impact defensively at the net. Louisville leads 1-0.
The Cardinals clamp down defensively in the last few points and win the set on a tip by Nayelis Cabello. Texas was out of position in the scramble, and Louisville makes them pay.
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Texas falls behind 22-20, but Torrey Stafford caps a 3-0 spurt with her fifth kill down the line and Louisville takes a timeout.
Set one: Texas 19, Louisville 18
Jerritt Elliott has been rotating in Rella Binney at the service line and Devin Kahahawai at the net late in sets, and it again pays off. Binney serves two quick points and Texas takes the lead on a Abby Vander Wal.
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Set one: Texas 15, Louisville 14
Louisville is playing frenetic defense and extending every rally, but Texas OH Torrey Stafford is heating up with three kills and an ace.
Texas has worked its way back into the match after a brutal start behind freshman Cari Spears, who has two kills and a block. Texas setter Ella Swindle wins a joust at the net, and we’re tied pending a Louisville challenge.
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This is Louisville’s first meeting with a ranked team this season, but the Cardinals seem unphased in their first meeting with Texas since getting swept by the Longhorns in the 2022 national championship team. Timeout, Texas. Coach Jerritt Elliott wants to take a breath.
Texas will start setter Ella Swindle, outside hitter Cari Spears, outside hitter Torrey Stafford, libero Emma Halter, middle blocker Ayden Ames, middle blocker Nya Bunton and defensive specialist Ramsey Gary. Louisville will start Kamden Schrand, Chloe Chicoine, Nayelis Cabello, Hanna Sherman, Cara Cresse and Kalyssa Blackshear.
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Since No. 7 Pittsburgh swept No. 3 Kentucky in the first game of the Shriners Children’s Showdown at the Net in Fort Worth, the start time between Texas and Louisville has been moved up to 7:53 p.m. CT.
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Where: Dickies Arena, Fort Worth
AUSTIN, Texas — Self-driving cars have become a common sight on Austin streets, but a new Texas law is adding tougher requirements for the companies behind the wheelless vehicles.
Senate Bill 2807 imposes stricter rules on autonomous vehicle companies operating in the state, including state authorization, emergency response plans for law enforcement, and a public portal where residents can verify operators and file safety complaints.
The changes come as Austin continues to track incidents involving autonomous vehicles. The city’s autonomous vehicle dashboard shows 75 incidents in 2026, including a collision, eight near misses, and seven incidents of ignoring police direction.
Attorney Drew Gibbs, a partner at Slingshot Law, said one crash involved a Waymo vehicle.
“There was a T-bone collision. A pretty serious T-bone collision where a Waymo just crashed into the side of my client’s vehicle,” Gibbs said.
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KEYE
One of the incidents of ignoring police direction happened during the mass shooting on West Sixth Street back in March, when three people died, and 15 others were injured.
Austin Police Association President Michael Bullock said autonomous vehicles can struggle in unusual situations.
“It didn’t impede on anything in the moment, but it’s not necessarily uncommon where these vehicles don’t quite know how to deal with these one-off scenarios,” Bullock said.
The new law requires autonomous vehicle companies to be authorized by the state, to provide an emergency response plan for law enforcement, and to participate in a public-facing portal that allows the public to verify operators and submit safety complaints.
Kara Kockelman, a professor of transportation and engineering at the University of Texas at Austin, welcomed the added oversight.
“I’m glad that the state is taking this a bit more seriously now,” she said. “It’s important not to just let others slip in without kind of meeting those basic minimums.”
Bullock said the emergency planning requirement may not make a major difference in fast-moving situations. Asked how impactful it is to have a fully laid out emergency response plan, Bullock said, “These plans are great, but it takes time to work through all of those versus the immediacy of having someone behind the wheel.”
The four autonomous vehicle companies operating in Austin — Waymo, Zoox, AV-Ride, and Tesla — are all state-authorized.
The Texas DMV said an autonomous vehicle company can lose its authorization to operate in Texas if the agency deems the vehicles are operating in a way that endangers public safety.
Waymo was contacted for comment, but had not responded.
AUSTIN, Texas – Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson said Tuesday she will leave the post next month.
What we know:
In a statement, Nelson said her resignation will be effective July 17 but did not provide a reason for the departure.
“It has been an honor to serve the people of Texas in this role,” Nelson said. “My time as Secretary came at an important moment for Texas, and I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish as an agency in under four years.”
Nelson has served in the role since 2023.
Among other things, the Secretary of State oversees elections and business filings in the state and serves as the chief diplomat of Texas.
View of Texas State Senator Jane Nelson, during the 80th Texas Legislature, on the floor of the Senate at the Texas State Capitol, Austin, Texas, January 22, 2007. (John Anderson/The Austin Chronicle / Getty Images)
What they’re saying:
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott described Nelson as extraordinary.
“I am deeply grateful for her long and loyal service and outstanding leadership. She has represented our state with grace and honor across the globe, and Texas is better because of it,” Abbott said. “Cecilia and I wish her all the best in the next chapter of her distinguished career.”
Dig deeper:
According to the Secretary of State’s office, Nelson has presided over seven statewide elections during her tenure with a cumulative 27 million ballots cast and broke a record with more than 3 million active business filers.
Nelson also served three decades in the Texas Senate, where she remains the longest-serving Republican in state history.
The Source: Information in this story came from the Texas Secretary of State’s office.
Michael Dorman
Austin, Texas, is revving up to sell $2.35 billion of debt for a convention center and a wastewater treatment plant, while a legal battle continues over bonds to help finance a light rail system.
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The bond boom comes as the city council voted on Thursday to pursue the development of a $390 million baseline general obligation bond package for the November ballot despite a call by Mayor Kirk Watson to wait until 2028.
“I believe we can and we should bring forward significant investments in the future,” he said. “In fact, if we restore compliance with our financial policies and we maintain the discipline we actually will have greater future capacity to do more for this community in 2028.”
A bond election would
The city, which last held a successful GO bond election in 2022 for $350 million of debt for affordable housing, had $1.03 billion of unissued voter-approved GO bond authorization as of the Sept. 30 end of fiscal 2025. Last year,
On Thursday, the city council signed off on a $34.5 million wrongful prosecution and conviction settlement with four individuals to be financed through the sale of non-voter-approved GO bonds.
The council approved up to $1.35 billion of special tax revenue bonds on May 21 for a $1.6 billion project to replace the city’s now-demolished convention center with a facility that will increase rentable event space to 620,000 square feet from 365,000 square feet.
Rich Saskal
The bonds are backed with revenue from certain city hotel occupancy taxes and incremental state tax revenue generated within a project finance zone the city established in 2024. Amounts and timings for issuing the debt are being determined, according to the city, which filed a petition with a Travis County District Court for an expedited validation of the bonds.
An ordinance approved in October
The city also plans to refund hotel occupancy tax-backed debt issued for the prior convention center in order to pledge a 4.5% hotel tax for the upcoming bonds.
“The refunding bonds are a separate, but related item to the expansion bonds and will only be secured by 2% venue HOT,” city documents said. “The 2% venue HOT will not be pledged to the expansion bonds and will cease to be collected upon final maturity or early payoff of (the refunding bonds).”
A petition drive that would have delayed the project fell 494 signatures short of a requirement for 20,000 valid signatures of registered voters, Austin City Clerk Erika Brady determined in November.
Petition backers are appealing a district court’s refusal to force validation in state appellate court after the Texas Supreme Court dismissed
The petition drive by Austin United PAC and others sought a ballot measure to stop the demolition and reconstruction of the convention center for seven years — or until the project was approved by voters — and prioritize city funding for local live music, arts, cultural, and outdoor tourism.
The Austin City Council also approved as much as $1 billion of water and wastewater system revenue bonds last month for the Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant expansion and enhancement project. The bonds will be used to obtain a direct low-interest loan from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program.
Other financing sources for the $1.5 billion project are $59 million from the Texas Water Development Board Clean Water State Revolving Fund program and funding from Austin Water.
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The plant, which serves more than 50% of Austin and operates at a treatment capacity of 75 million gallons per day, will have its capacity increased to 100 MGD, helping meet future demand and requirements set by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for Austin’s projected growth of 1.5 million by 2040, according to a city statement.
A legal logjam over a light rail system eased May 22 when the Texas Supreme Court finally ruled on a procedural issue related to an initial $150 million of bonds for the project. The high court ordered a Travis County Court judge to decide whether the bonds’ issuer, the Austin Transit Partnership, a nonprofit corporation created by the city and Capital Metro Transportation Authority, has standing to seek court validation for the debt.
City taxpayers who filed a lawsuit in 2023, along with the Texas Attorney General’s Office have been challenging the legality of the bonds, which would be paid off with a portion of Austin’s operation and maintenance property taxes
Escalating costs led ATP to downsize Project Connect to an initial less than 10-mile, 15-station system with a similar price tag. The completion of a federal environmental review in January allowed the project to continue a process
ATP said Project Connect is moving forward with construction scheduled to begin next year.
“We are confident in our case and look forward to our day in court,” ATP said in a statement. “The pending litigation has not slowed our progress advancing Austin light rail, which has hit major milestones in the federal funding process, design, and pre-construction work this year.”
Bill Aleshire, an attorney who filed the taxpayers’ lawsuit, cautioned that several issues remain before the court, including the legality of the downsized project and the ability to pay off bonds with property tax revenue that is supposed to be used for operations.
“Their federal funding is uncertain, their ability to issue bonds is uncertain, and they just stubbornly will not listen to us and say it’s time to pause Project Connect and rethink it, that maybe rail isn’t the best way to go at this time and maybe we can’t afford it at this time,” he said.
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