Volleyball Inks Two for 2023
11/9/2022 7:56:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
HOUSTON — Rice volleyball head coach Genny Volpe announced on Wednesday the addition of two student-athletes for the 2023-24 season. Joining the Owls will be Stephanie Gutierrez (Fort Worth, Texas) and Cindy Tchouangwa (Katy, Texas).
Gutierrez, a 6-1 middle blocker, is a two-time District 3-6A Co-Blocker of the Year. She currently leads Boswell High School in kills (471), and kills per set (3.4) while placing second in hitting percentage (.364) and blocks (114). She has led the Lady Pioneers to a 34-12 record and the Bi-District championship. Last year, she led Boswell to a 28-14 record and the District 3-6A title, hitting .410 with 305 kills and 108 blocks.
"We are thrilled to be adding Stephanie to the team in 2023," said Volpe. "She is a fast middle that can transition well and score both in front and behind the setter. She is extremely competitive and tenacious at the net defensively and does a great job of blocking one-on-one from the middle position. We think she will fit well into our style of offense as well as create problems at the net for our opponents with her defense."
Tchouangwa, a 6-0 outside hitter, is a two-time First Team All-District 19-6A and Outstanding Hitter. This year, she has led Tompkins High School to a 38-3 record, leading the squad in kills (521), kills per set (4.6), hitting percentage (.415), digs (553), and blocks (42) while placing second in digs per set (3.9). Last week, she was named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-Region team. Last year, she led the Falcons to a 35-6 record, recording 402 kills, 263 digs and 59 blocks.
Said Volpe, "Cindy is one of the best outside hitters to come out of the 2023 class. She has the ability to terminate both in system and out of system with her quick and powerful arm swing. She has great transition footwork and works very hard to be in a strong position to attack. Cindy also has a very high volleyball IQ as she has trained and played at a very high level from a young age. She can score well from both the front row and the back row and can cover a lot of ground on defense. We are very excited to be adding Cindy to the Rice Volleyball family."
Gutierrez, a 6-1 middle blocker, is a two-time District 3-6A Co-Blocker of the Year. She currently leads Boswell High School in kills (471), and kills per set (3.4) while placing second in hitting percentage (.364) and blocks (114). She has led the Lady Pioneers to a 34-12 record and the Bi-District championship. Last year, she led Boswell to a 28-14 record and the District 3-6A title, hitting .410 with 305 kills and 108 blocks.
"We are thrilled to be adding Stephanie to the team in 2023," said Volpe. "She is a fast middle that can transition well and score both in front and behind the setter. She is extremely competitive and tenacious at the net defensively and does a great job of blocking one-on-one from the middle position. We think she will fit well into our style of offense as well as create problems at the net for our opponents with her defense."
Tchouangwa, a 6-0 outside hitter, is a two-time First Team All-District 19-6A and Outstanding Hitter. This year, she has led Tompkins High School to a 38-3 record, leading the squad in kills (521), kills per set (4.6), hitting percentage (.415), digs (553), and blocks (42) while placing second in digs per set (3.9). Last week, she was named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-Region team. Last year, she led the Falcons to a 35-6 record, recording 402 kills, 263 digs and 59 blocks.
Said Volpe, "Cindy is one of the best outside hitters to come out of the 2023 class. She has the ability to terminate both in system and out of system with her quick and powerful arm swing. She has great transition footwork and works very hard to be in a strong position to attack. Cindy also has a very high volleyball IQ as she has trained and played at a very high level from a young age. She can score well from both the front row and the back row and can cover a lot of ground on defense. We are very excited to be adding Cindy to the Rice Volleyball family."
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