Texas Border Business
RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Volleyball Head Coach Todd Lowery announced on Monday the addition of 6-0 redshirt sophomore middle blocker Luisa Silva Dos Santos for the 2021 season.
Silva Dos Santos comes to UTRGV from Odessa College, where as a sophomore, she earned WJCAC Most Valuable Player and All-WJCAC honors while leading Odessa to the No. 2 overall seed in the NJCAA Tournament. For the season, Silva Dos Santos averaged 2.25 kills on .392 hitting, 0.75 digs and 0.93 blocks in 89 sets across 28 matches.
As a freshman, Silva Dos Santos earned Second Team NJCAA All-American and First Team All-WJCAC and All-Region honors by averaging 2.04 kills on .407 hitting, 0.24 aces, 0.78 digs, and 1.32 blocks in 122 sets across 36 matches. She also earned NJCAA All-Academic Third Team and WJCAC All-Academic First Team honors.
Originally from Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Silva Dos Santos was awarded best middle blocker in 2018 as part of the Sogipa tournament. She also played with Minas Tennis Clube and Olympico club along with fellow signee Luanna Emiliano, a 5-7 freshman libero
“Luisa is a great blocker and as she has gotten stronger. Her hitting is really coming along,” Lowery said. “She had a great career at Odessa as a two time All-American. She has an infectious personality that will make her a fan favorite.”
Rodrigues joinsEmiliano, 6-0 freshman outside hitter Ingridy Foltran, 5-8 freshman outside hitterPerris Key, 5-1 freshman libero Evana Ramos, and her teammate at Odessa, 6-3 redshirt sophomore right side hitter Maria Eduarda Rodrigues, as part of the 2021 recruiting class.
“Overall, this is a very talented group of players, and a very fun group of girls that love the sport of volleyball,” Lowery said. “We are so excited to get them all here and get back to work.”
