TCU headlines Big 12 Yearly Awards
4/30/2025 4:00:00 PM | Women's Beach Volleyball
TCU wins Pair of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Coach of the Year
FORT WORTH – In the Big 12's first year of sponsoring the sport, TCU has earned three of the four beach volleyball yearly awards. The undefeated duo of Anhelina Khmil and Ana Vergara garnered the Big 12 Pair of the Year honors, followed by Sofia Izuzquiza as Big 12's Freshman of the Year. Head coach Hector Gutierrez has been named the Big 12 Coach of the Year.
In addition, six Horned Frogs took a spot on the conference's All-Big 12 Team: Daniela Alvarez, Maria Gonzalez, Hailey Hamlett, Khmil, Tania Moreno and Vergara.
Heading into the NCAA tournament this weekend Khmil and Vergara boast a record of 18-0, with 17 of those wins coming from the No. 4 spot. The two are the only Horned Frog pairing to remain undefeated this season. Additionally, Khmil leads the team in ranked wins, with 20 victories under her belt.
In her first year at TCU, Izuzquiza earned herself a record of 26-5, and has appeared in the most matches of anyone in her freshmen class. Her 26 wins put her at the third most wins for a Horned Frog this season. Starting with a ranked win over then-No. 5 Stanford, she has earned herself 18 ranked wins on the season. This is the fourth consecutive year for TCU to win Freshman of the Year honors in their respective conference.
In his ninth year as a head coach for TCU, Gutierrez led the squad to a season record of 28-5. In the last AVCA Coaches poll before the NCAA tournament, the Horned Frogs are ranked No. 1 for the third time this season. The top ranking additionally marked TCU's six consecutive week ranked in the AVCA Top Two.
This is the third conference coach of the year award for Gutierrez. In the Gutierrez era he has coached an all-time record of 216-81.
