Former Nebraska Volleyball star Lexi Rodriguez recently sent an inspiring message to her collegiate team ahead of their season opener. Rodriguez represented the program from 2021 to 2024 and served as the captain of the team in her junior and senior years alongside Merritt Beason.During her collegiate career at Nebraska, she earned some of the biggest accolades, including being a Honda Sport Award for Volleyball finalist in 2024, an AVCA National Player of the Year finalist in 2024, the Big Ten Medal of Honor (Nebraska, all sports) recipient in 2025 and a three-time AVCA All-America First Team selection in 2021, 2023, and 2024.Ahead of the Nebraska Volleyball's AVCA First Serve match against Pittsburgh on August 22 at 6:00 PM CDT, Rodriguez has sent an encouraging message to the Nebraska Volleyball team (shared via LOVB Nebraska’s Instagram):“Huskers, I know you have been training so hard and are fully prepared for the season ahead, just remember to be present and enjoy every match you guys get to play together! I can’t wait to watch this stacked team compete this fall!! Go big red ❤️” View this post on Instagram Instagram PostNotably, Lexi Rodriguez is currently on international duty, representing the United States at the FIVB Women’s Volleyball World Championship. She also featured in the team’s season-opening match against Slovenia, which they won by 3-1.Former Nebraska Volleyball star Lexi Rodriguez makes feelings known on winning the AAU Sullivan Award winnerNebraska Volleyball icon Lexi Rodriguez expressed her disbelief after being named the AAU Sullivan Award winner. She called it an ‘honour’ and one of the coolest things she’s ever won. In an interview with WQAD News 8 in May 2025, she said (0:22 onwards):“Yeah, to start, it's very crazy. Like it doesn’t seem like I belong with those like Simone Biles and Michael Phelps and everything. So it truly is just an honor. I don’t know how I got there, but somehow I did, and it will probably be one of the coolest things that I’ve ever won.”“It’s just super crazy that I even was in the conversation in the first place, and then to have it be, I think being a libero is something that I take the most pride in, about being the first of everything. Obviously being the first at Nebraska is really cool and all that but I think just for the position itself, I’ve always been trying to just advocate for it,” the 22-year-old added.It is worth noting that Rodriguez is the first volleyball player from Nebraska and only the third volleyball player overall to win this prestigious honor.