Abby Vander Wal was injured against TCU. How does Texas volleyball adjust?

LAS VEGAS - The tinkering will have to continue for Texas volleyball .

Head coach Jerritt Elliott had been adjusting UT's 6-2 rotation with Genevieve Harris and Rella Binney coming in at setter. But that changed this weekend at the  Players Era Invitational in Las Vegas when outside hitter Abby Vander Wal went down with a lower body injury in the first set against TCU .

Texas Longhorns setter Rella Binney (3) warms up ahead of the Longhorns' summer scrimmage against the Rice Owls in Gregory Gymnasium, Aug. 14, 2026. (Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman)

The Longhorns ended up sweeping the Horned Frogs 30-28, 25-23, 25-23. But the lineup looked different the following day when Texas  was swept by Nebraska .

Addy Gaido didn't rotate in and Elliott went to his littles for some back-row support. Plus, the rotations in the front were tighter.

MORE : No. 1 Nebraska dominates from the service line and net to sweep No. 2 Texas in Las Vegas

RELATED: Abby Vander Wal injury update: Texas Longhorns OH leaves game against TCU

With a big piece of the Longhorns offense out, what is next?

Filling in for Vander Wal

Teammates surrounded Gaido, patting her on the back Friday after she replaced Vander Wal. Working with outside hitters Torrey Stafford and Cari Spears, alongside middle blockers Nya Bunton and Taylor Harvey, the 6-foot-4 sophomore showed how good her hands are.

"Addy came in and did a nice job and held it together," Elliott said after the match Saturday night.

Gaido only had one dig and one kill, but she helped seal the edges of the court and her presence on the pins played a part in a TCU attack error to evade set point. Her serve then helped tie the set at 24.

Elliott eventually had a front of Spears, Stafford and Harvey while Gaido rotated in. Having her length in the triple block was helpful as the Longhorns worked their way to 10 block assists.

Texas Longhorns outside hitter Addy Gaido (14) spikes the ball during the volleyball game against Minnesota at Gregory Gym on Monday, Aug. 10, 2026 in Austin. (Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman)

"We call her (Gaido) our unicorn," Stafford said. "She does everything. She played middle for us this spring and she's a good pin."

Anderson also rotated in as well. The freshman did not have the strongest outing in the first two games, but she rallied with eight kills, two aces, five digs and five blocks.

Elliott isn't worried about Anderson's first week on the court because she is a freshman. Plus, facing the pressure isn't something new at Texas volleyball and it's about building her confidence so she can succeed when given the chance.

"You go through this ‘ring of fire' at Texas. The Logan Egglestons and Ajia O'Neils, every one of those guys went through the same exact kind of emotion stress that she went through," Elloitt said.

Anderson rose to the occasion and challenged the senior hitters of TCU with her swing or block. But her effort at the service line created opportunities for Texas to score on free balls (it also played part in some of the Frogs' 25 errors on the evening).

But things changed against Nebraska. Spears, Stafford and Anderson carried a heavy load of the attack alongside Bunton and Taylor Harvey. Not having the extra power Vander Wal provides limited what the Texas offense could do.

Texas Longhorns setter Ella Swindle (1) serves the ball during the volleyball game against Minnesota at Gregory Gym on Monday, Aug. 10, 2026 in Austin. (Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman)

From Ella to Rella

Longstanding setter Ella Swindle has not seen any action at all so far this season.

Texas ran a 5-1 rotation Sunday against Nebraska and called on the senior a few times to do some spot blocking. Swindle helped Texas win a national championship in 2023 as a freshman setter.

"There's some opportunity," Elliott said Sunday afternoon. "Maybe there's a rotation like, come in block rotation five, side out rotation five, if they're in there."

Binney has taken over as setter and her combined efforts with Harris work to help get teams out of system. Because Texas employs a new rotation, Elliott does not want to put a player in a position where they, or the offense, can be exposed.

"We have not run this at all in our practice, all preseason or all spring either," Elliott said.

Elliott made the change to a 6-2 before the season started, but changes in the front row could necessitate further adjustments. And Swindle played in the 5-1 in the past.

"We've ran a 5-1 before, but in preseason we haven't ran it with Rella," Stafford said Sunday afternoon. "I feel like we're really comfortable with it, it's just adjusting to the personnel on the court."

If a situation calls for it - such as looking for more backcourt options - as Elliott explained, Swindle may rotate in a bit more.

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