"Sorry I'm late, practice ran long," Southern Methodist University's graduate setter, Celia Cullen, told 5wins, "We were carving pumpkins."

The Southern Methodist University volleyball team took the season by storm when, as a then-unranked team, the Mustangs swept No. 2 Nebraska in September. Then, in the second meeting between No. 15 SMU and No. 1 Pittsburgh, SMU won a hard-fought five-set battle to do what no other team has done this season – beat the number one and number two teams in the country.

That doesn't mean SMU has been perfect; they have losses to Hawaii, Loyola Marymount, No. 1 Pittsburgh, No. 4 Louisville, No. 5 Stanford, and No. 10 Kentucky. The Mustangs are now 12th in the American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, but their brave arrival into the ACC isn't an overnight phenomenon.

Experience brings freedom

Nine seniors and graduate students lead the Mustangs, who head coach Sam Erger calls "trailblazers" – the players who have been at the program for three or four years and players who transferred in for their final year of eligibility.

"I think it's trailblazing to forego the expectation of them to go to another big-time school, but no, they're going to come to SMU," coach Erger said. "I think that it's really cool that this is the first group to be in the ACC. It's the first group to make us really nationally prominent and really good, and they'll forever get to hold on to that."

Celia Cullen is one of the players who has been with SMU for three years and the team's starting setter after playing two years at Michigan State. For her, Dallas and SMU are the total package, and her decision to transfer was only bolstered by the energy of the coaching staff.

"It's a younger staff, and I think they really understood what it meant to give us the best volleyball experience possible. Volleyball is such an important piece of it, but I could tell that they really cared about us as humans, and they really wanted us to enjoy the overall experience of it," Cullen said.

Off-the-court bonding

Last year, they took a cooking class in New Orleans, went to Universal, and played in Europe. This year, the team visited Hawaii for games against Hawaii and San Diego and extra team bonding time.

Hence, the early morning pumpkin carving. Erger and her staff could tell the team was feeling the mid-season fatigue. The success of SMU is no longer a secret, adding a bit of pressure to the players to perform. So, she and her staff surprised the team with breakfast, pumpkins, Halloween donuts, and a Powerade taste test challenge.

"Let's just make it fun and do something different and see if we can get them laughing and smiling and enjoying each other and competing. I think sometimes a new perspective or break in the monotony can refresh people," Erger explained.

Graduate students Nnedi Okammor and Maya Tabron are two players who transferred to SMU for their final season. The off-the-court culture of support, plus the maturity of the team, drove them to SMU and helped them play fearlessly.

"We go into those games with nothing to lose attitudes. We're not scared that Pitt is ranked number one. We're not scared that Nebraska was number two. We just went into that as if we're just playing another team, and we're just going to go out there and do it," Tabron, an outside hitter, said.

SMU celebrates after sweeping No. 2 Nebraska

"Most people didn't have very high expectations of them, so they don't feel pressure," Erger said." So when you're not feeling pressure, you're just, hey, win or lose, I'm gonna go do my best to see what happens and that freedom allows you, I think, to perform at a high level," Erger said. 

Okammor, a middle blocker, emphasizes the team's motto of "On a Mission." "Not many people are in our position of having a fifth year that you can play," she said.

Building the whole person is also something Erger stresses. Coaches typically get four hours a day, and the tendency can be to train only volleyball during that time.

Building a whole person

SMU has 21 standards that they focus on throughout the season. "We're spending 15 to 20 minutes every day just on character growth and development of, you know, the person. We are constantly trying to talk about how can we be good people and be wise and be kind and uphold really high value systems," Erger said.

Cullen, Okammor, and Tabron believe these standards help hold the team together during big moments. There is an emphasis on accountability and communication on and off the court. While the coaches plan activities, the team also finds time off the court to build relationships that positively impact game moments.

"I think it also helps us because none of us are really afraid to be like, 'Hey, I need that ball higher,' or keep each other accountable because we have a close enough relationship where we know no one is saying something purposely to our detriment. Everyone is striving towards a common goal," Cullen stresses.

"Culture is really important. I think it can be a competitive advantage. It can help you win points. We talk about we're here to pursue healthy relationships, grow as players, and pursue championships," she said.

The power of talented coaches and players not taking anything for granted makes SMU a formidable foe.

"Team building is such a huge thing. If you want to perform well on the court, you have to want to be in each other's presence off the court also," Okammor said.

There is one more month of the regular season and three weeks of the NCAA tournament. The SMU players in their final year of college are using every opportunity they have – in practice, pregame, in games to have fun with it and compete while they still can.

There is an inevitable passing of the torch sometime in December for the Mustangs, but the underclassmen are learning from the best, and Erger and her staff are committed to SMU becoming a special place for volleyball. 

Beating Pittsburgh and Nebraska was just the start.