Texas volleyball has another free scrimmage Saturday. What to know if you go

With the regular season just a week away, the Texas volleyball team has one more chance to show off for the locals before beginning its quest for a third straight national title.

The Longhorns will compete in their annual intrasquad scrimmage 10 a.m. Saturday at Gregory Gym on the University of Texas campus. According to star outside hitter Madisen Skinner , the free scrimmage will give a squad with eight new players another chance to make an impression with the lights on and the crowd at full throat.

“There's a lot of talent when it comes to the newcomers,” said Skinner, volleyballmag.com’s reigning player of the year. “I mean, everyone is pretty much on the same playing field. I feel like there are maybe a couple girls that are a little more solidified than others, but again, it can change. You're competing every single day like you're trying to win that spot. And I feel like that's the mentality across the board.”

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New faces get another chance to shine Saturday

As fans saw in the Longhorns’ scrimmage last week against UTSA, several of those newcomers look ready to contribute. Freshman middle blocker Ayden Ames started for a team trying to replace All-American Asjia O’Neal, and Reagan Rutherford and Whitney Lauenstein looked like viable attacking options opposite Skinner.

Texas coach Jerritt Elliott said he likes what he sees from his first-year players, and he will work further on his rotations and team chemistry during Saturday’s scrimmage. But he also wants — especially for the new Longhorns — to keep strengthening the day-to-day expectations for a program trying to become just the second to win three straight titles.

“We have a couple of players in here who are, like, ‘This is just what we do at Texas, we win championships,’ ” he said. “They don't realize how much work has gone into it, how much culture-building has gone into it, and how much toughness it takes to get to that point. So it creates a base for us to teach, but it's also a point where we're focused on being aware of what our mentality is like moving forward.”

MORE: Texas volleyball, NCAA's defending champs, enters season ranked No. 1

Season opens in September with challenging doubleheader

Moving forward after Saturday’s scrimmage means a challenging double-header to open the season in Milwaukee. Top-ranked Texas will meet No. 3 Wisconsin in the season-opener Sept. 1 followed by a match against No. 18 Minnesota on Sept. 2.

Texas will make its home debut against Indiana Sept. 5 and its SEC home opener Oct. 2 against South Carolina.

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Saturday's Longhorn volleyball scrimmage

What: Orange vs. White intrasquad match

When: 10 a.m.

Where: Gregory Gymnasium, free to the public

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas volleyball has another free scrimmage Saturday. What to know if you go