By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
No. 8 nationally-ranked Washburn University will open its 2026 season with four matches across three days in the Washburn Invitational in Lee Arena.
No. 8-ranked Washburn volleyball will open its 2026 season with four matches in the Washburn Invitational Thursday through Saturday. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Washburn, coming off a 27-5 record last fall, will open its 57th season at 6 p.m. Thursday against Oklahoma Christian. The Ichabods will face Arkansas Tech at 2 p.m. and William Jewell at 7 o'clock on Friday before closing out the weekend with a 2 p.m. Saturday match against Westminster University.
"We did get to compete against other teams (Rockhurst, Drury and Southwest Baptist) in scrimmages, but I'm ready to actually put the jersey on and play against other people,'' said senior libero Taylor Rottinghaus.
"Obviously preseason it's not the real deal, but it's exciting to see us come out and attack other teams and it's fun to just see that before we actually get out and play for real. We've been working really hard this week at practice and we're ready to showcase what we have (Thursday).''
Oklahoma Christian went 19-10 last season while Arkansas Tech was 15-12, William Jewell 4-23 and Westminster 17-10.
Last season Washburn went 4-0 in the Washburn Invitational. The Ichabods have won their last 23 matches played at home in regular-season tournaments.
Washburn is back in Lee Arena this season after going 12-1 in Whiting Fieldhouse in 2025 while renovations were completed in Lee Arena.
"I'm so excited to play in Lee Arena,'' Rottinghaus said. "It's definitely a different atmosphere up in Whiting but it's also an amazing atmosphere down in Lee. We've seen other sports do it and I'm just ready for it to be our turn.''
This is the first season since 2021 that the Ichabods will open its season at home. Washburn has won its last seven season-openers.
The Ichabods were picked to finish in a tie for first in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll. Washburn received a league-high five first-place votes and 134 total points, tied with Nebraska-Kearney for the top spot.
Washburn recorded its 24th straight winning season in 2025 with a 13-3 record in the MIAA, securing a share of the MIAA regular-season championship.
Rottinghaus, a former Shawnee Heights standout, earned All-MIAA second-team honors for the third straight season in 2025.
A senior, Rottinghaus recorded a team-high 468 digs and was second on the team with 30 service aces while adding 121 assists. As a junior she had six matches with 20 or more digs. She finished sixth in the MIAA in total digs while ranking seventh in the conference in digs per set.
With 1,481 career digs, Rottinghaus ranks ninth on the Ichabod all-time chart in total digs. Her career digs per set mark of 4.70 is fourth in program history.
Brynne Topolski, a rightside hitter, is back for her junior season after playing in all 32 matches off the bench last year. She earned All-MIAA second-team recognition after recording 270 kills, second most on the team, while hitting .270. She also added 54 blocks with 53 digs and six assists. Topolski had 11 matches with 10-plus kills and nine hitting .400 or better.
Junior Keilah Rivers returns to the outside hitter rotation after receiving All-MIAA honorable mention last season while playing in all 32 matches and making 30 starts. She finished third on the team with 222 kills and had six matches with 10-plus kills and two double-doubles.
Autumn Gibbs, a senior, played in all 32 matches while making eight starts and finished third on the team with 274 digs. She also served 26 aces and added 49 assists while compiling 11 matches with double-digit digs.
Eight new Ichabods will suit up in 2026 with six incoming freshman and a pair of transfers.
The freshman class includes Brooklyn Benoit (Wichita), Morgan Sears (Overland Park), Hayden Meats (Olathe), Kalyn Sampson (Sedgwick), Avery Willey (Shawnee Heights) and Finley Rieke (Tonganoxie).
Coming to Washburn as transfers are Emma Siron (Sedalia, Mo.) and Lauren Tyler (Rogersville, Mo.).
Tyler will enter the setter rotation as a senior after spending three seasons at Drury, where she played in 83 matches and 330 sets while tallying 2,500 assists with 680 digs and adding 266 kills with 113 aces.
Siron is a redshirt junior outside hitter after spending three seasons and playing in two at Central Missouri. She played in 59 matches and 203 sets last season, tallying 532 kills with 361 digs. Siron earned All-MIAA second-team honors as a freshman in 2023 and was a first-team All-MIAA selection in 2025.
Like Rottinghaus, veteran Washburn coach Chris Herron said he's chomping at the bit to get the season under way.
"I'm past excited,'' Herron said. "It's a pretty good group. We've only had one bad practice so far, so it's been good. They're very competitive, to the point that this weekend we'll play a lot of different lineups and give kids a chance.
"A lot of them have stepped in and immediately stepped up, so it's been fun to watch.''
Herron is in his 25th season at the helm of the Ichabod volleyball program with a career record of 651-145.
Herron was inducted into the Washburn Athletics Hall of Fame in 2025 and has led the Ichabods to 19 NCAA Tournament appearances and seven combined MIAA titles (six regular season and one tournament). He led the Ichabods to the NCAA national championship match in 2021.
Next week Washburn will head to Sioux Falls, S.D. for four matches in the Sioux Falls Classic beginning Thursday, Sept. 3, and concluding on Saturday, Sept. 5.
The Ichabods' first MIAA match of the season will come on Friday, Sept. 18, against Fort Hays State at 6 p.m. in Lee Arena.
