Volleyball Captains Preview 2026 Season

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Volleyball season is officially here.

Oregon State will head to the Beehive State this weekend to face Utah Tech, Utah Valley and Utah, playing three matches in three days before welcoming California Baptist for the home opener Sept. 3.

With the season just beginning, the team's three captains, Aly Cox, AC Froehlich and Jackie Matias, participated a Q/A with OSUBeavers.com to talk all things Oregon State.

It's been nine months since the team capped off one of the most successful seasons in program history. Building on that momentum as we head into 2026, what are your goals as a group?

Cox: "Our big goal this season is obviously to win the Pac 12 and make it to the NCAA tournament. We are so excited about the group we are going into this season with and hope to continue to improve and make the most of every opportunity to play together."

Froehlich: "As a group, we intend to compete with passion and competitiveness in every match we play. Together, this team will make it far."

Matias: "Our goals are continuing to grow as our team has grown in the off season. We are stronger, more determined and more excited than ever to have a conference tournament and to claim that NCAA tournament berth."

What excites you most about the upcoming season, and what can fans look forward to seeing?

Cox: "Personally, I am so excited to be a part of a team who cares so much. We care about each other, we care about winning, and we care a lot about Oregon State. Our team is super competitive and we have really been buying into being sassier on the court. Fans who come to the game can expect to see both our competitive side and our personalities shine through on the court."

Froehlich: "The most exciting thing about this season is this group of women that make up this team! We are a super passionate and fiery group with a driven, competitive spirit. We also always look like we are having a blast."

Matias: "We are a very exciting team to watch, we play hard but also celebrate hard. Our bond with each other off the court shows in how we connect and battle together on the court."

What's one word you'd use to describe this year's team and why?

Cox: "Bought in. We are bought in to the vision that the coaches have for the program and we are bought into each other. We compete every day at practice because we have a shared understanding of how valuable each training block we have together is. I feel like everyone on the team is so grateful to be here and is willing to pour into the program daily.

Froehlich: "Relentless. I feel like as a group, we are determined to win and have a blast while doing it. Winning the long, relentless rallies is just as fun as the flashy rallies for this team."

Matias: "I would say sass. We celebrate loud and make sure our team's vibe is always better than our opponents'."

The team went undefeated in six matches during an offseason trip to Europe that included stops in Turkey, Austria, Germany and Italy. How do you think that experience will help the group this year?

Cox: "The foreign trip taught us a lot of things that will translate into this season. We learned how to always be ready to compete regardless of fatigue, temperature (Europe in June is no joke), and other factors out of our control. We also learned how to adapt quickly, facing teams with different styles of play taught us how to adjust on the fly. Above all else, the time that we got to spend making lifelong memories together brought us closer as a group than any training block could, and we can already see that translating. As a group we are really close and love spending time together."

Froehlich: "Above all, I think the bond that we formed amongst each other and the learning each other on and off the court will give us a massive edge going into the season. We got to have really cool conversations and experiences together in these awesome places and we got to start finding our groove on the court throughout that as well, which was extremely beneficial for this team's growth and connection as a group."

Matias: "We are a tight knit group after having such incredible bonding experiences this summer. We connect well on the court because of those experiences off the court and we were so grateful to have gone on our foreign trip."

The microphone is yours; what would you like to say to Beaver Nation ahead of this season?

Cox: "We are so grateful for you and hope to see you in the stands, on campus, or around Corvallis this fall. Thank you for supporting our program. Go Beavs!"

Froehlich: "This team is a super fun group with a great vibe and we love to compete - we will do our best to make you proud and show you some great volleyball. Go Beavs!"

Matias: "Hey Beaver Nation, come out and support Beaver volleyball this season! We are eager to play in front of you all. Go BEAVS!"

OUR MISSION:
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).

Players Mentioned

Aly Cox

AC Froehlich

Jackie Matias

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