KINGSTON, R.I. - Rhode Island volleyball head coach Nicki Holmes has announced his incoming class for the 2020 season. Joining Holmes for his first year in Kingston will be Samantha Blahut (Coral Springs, Fla.), Haley Sawyer (Ashaway, R.I.) and Brynne Wright (Austin, Texas).
SAMANTHA BLAHUT – MIDDLE BLOCKER – 6-0 – CORAL SPRINGS, FLA./MARJORY STONEMAN DOUGLAS
Selected Rhode Island because of the amazing academics and athletics programs, as well as the campus location.
Before URI: Captained the volleyball team at Marjory Stoneman Douglas… Earned her team's Offensive MVP award as a senior and was selected to the FACA All-Star Team… Helped lead MSD to the 2019 district championship and regional semifinals… Also played club volleyball for Ocean Breeze Volleyball (2016-17) and Tribe Elite Volleyball (2017-20).
Personal: Born February 11, 2002... Daughter of Felicia and Greg Blahut... Has an older sister, Natalie... Enjoys yoga, baking and playing tennis... Favorite athletes are Victoria Garrick, Kathryn Plummer and Tami Alade... Favorite teams are the Oregon, Stanford and Nebraska volleyball programs... Is majoring in Environmental and Natural Resource Economics.
Holmes on Blahut: Samantha is a talented athlete that excels in the middle position. Her personality and desire to learn is wonderful, and we can't wait to get her into our culture and training environment to see her shine.
HALEY SAWYER – DEFENSIVE SPECIALIST – 5-7 – ASHAWAY, R.I./NORTH KINGSTOWN
Selected URI because of her family roots – her mother was a member of the Rhody volleyball team, her grandfather was a chemistry professor at URI and her grandmother used to work in the university's communications office... She grew up a URI fan and is now proud to be representing her state university.
Before URI: Attended Chariho High School as a freshman before finishing her schooling at North Kingstown High School, as part of the Academy of Business & Finance program… Was an honor roll student at both schools… In the academy at NKHS, served as a mentor to incoming freshman and sophomores… Also was a part of the DECA team in 2017 and 2018… Earned Century Club status for logging more than 100 after-school workouts as part of the North Strength and Conditioning Club... Played club volleyball for South County Juniors Volleyball (five years), Blast Volleyball (three years) and Ocean State Volleyball (one year)… Served as team captain for North Kingstown High School (2019) and South County Juniors (2018-20)… Helped lead NKHS to three consecutive undefeated seasons and three R.I. Division I championship titles (2017-19)… Earned First-Team All-State and All-Division honors in 2018 and 2019… Also was a two-time All-Tournament Team selection… As a senior, was a WPRI/ABC6 Hometown Hero as well as a Providence Journal Player of the Year nominee… As a junior, was her team's MVP… Also earned All-Division Second Team accolades as a freshman at Chariho… In beach volleyball, her 16U team won the AVP Gold Series Tournament (N.Y.), placed second at the AVP America Nationals (N.J.) and finished third at the USAV Nationals (Siesta Key)… In her spare time, has volunteered with South County Juniors Volleyball, Hopkinton Recreation, and the annual Newport Volleyball League/Tomorrow Fund grass volleyball tournament.
Personal: Born Sept 9, 2001... Daughter of Mary and John Sawyer... Mother was a member of the URI volleyball team (1981)… Has two older brothers, Timothy and Jason... Enjoys being active – working out, running, playing beach volleyball, paddle boarding, and going to the beach… Other hobbies include baking, music, art and experiencing new things... Favorite athletes are Misty May-Treanor, Sarah Hughes and April Ross... Favorite team is the New England Patriots... Is majoring in Psychology and Criminal Justice with future career plans of being a forensic psychologist.
Holmes on Sawyer: Being a stud and a known commodity in the local volleyball community, Haley will be a welcomed addition to our team. She has a great attitude and excels in her approach to training, both indoor and in the sand. That will serve her well as she starts her collegiate career here at URI.
BRYNNE WRIGHT – OUTSIDE HITTER – 6-0 – AUSTIN, TEXAS/VANDEGRIFT
Selected Rhode Island because of the volleyball program, the coaches and the players… Thought the location and campus was beautiful and was excited about the opportunity to live somewhere different.
Before URI: Was a member of the volleyball team at Vandegrift High School… Also played club volleyball for Austin Performance Volleyball from 2014-20… Is a versatile competitor who has experience playing as an outside hitter, a middle blocker, a right side, and a defensive specialist… In two varsity seasons, she recorded 910 kills, 357 digs, 86 blocks and 70 service aces… Helped lead her team to back-to-back Bi-District titles (Texas 6A, District 13) in 2018 and 2019… Team also claimed the Area title in 2019 and District title in 2018… Won gold at the 2019 AAU Grand Prix, the 2018 Girls Junior National Championship (American Division) and the 2018 Tour of Texas Stop #2, and silver at the 2018 SCVA Red Rock Rave… Individually, she earned First Team All-District honors in both 2018 and 2019… Was on the AVCA's 2019 All-American Watchlist… Also was named to the AVCA's Phenom List (2017, 2018), Prep Volleyball GJNC Championship Day Star Search (2018) and Prep Volleyball Showcase Shiner (2017)… As a senior, registered 22 kills in a game against Lake Travis to earn MaxPreps Player of the Match honors… Was an Academic All-District First Team selection in both 2018 and 2019… Spent four years as a member of the National Charity League… Is active in the Austin Christian Fellowship Student ministry and went on a mission trip to Guatemala in July of 2019… Also is a member of Mensa International, which is the largest high IQ society in the world open to people who score at the 98th percentile or higher on a supervised IQ intelligence test.
Personal: Born July 18, 2002... Daughter of Brandi and Derek Wright... Father played basketball at UT Pan-American and Spring Hill College… Has an older brother, Chas… Enjoys hanging out with friends, baking, shopping, coloring, playing video games, watching movies, going to the lake and going out to eat… Favorite athlete is Morgan Hentz... Favorite team is the Pittsburgh Steelers... Is majoring in Industrial Engineering and also is interested in digital forensics and computer science.
Holmes on Wright: Brynne is a great addition to our roster. Her ability to score along with her competitive nature will fit along quite well with the culture of our program. We look forward to seeing her grow and prosper in her collegiate career.
