And just like that, the inaugural season of the pro volleyball league, LOVB, is officially a wrap—and yeah, it absolutely delivered. Austin’s got a shiny new trophy now ‘cause the squad led by former Texas Longhorn legends Logan Eggleston and Madisen Skinner just pulled off a dream finish. They swept Omaha clean in straight sets—25-19, 25-22, 25-23—at the KFC Yum! Center like it was just another day at the office. Eggleston went full beast mode with 17 kills and five monster blocks, while Skinner—oh, she snapped—put up another 17 kills and snagged that LOVB Finals MVP crown like a queen.

This squad came into the playoffs as a fifth seed with a meh 5-11 regular season, but got red-hot at the perfect time, knocking off Salt Lake and top-seeded Atlanta before silencing Omaha in the finale. And while all the volleyball magic was going down, something kinda off left fans raising their eyebrows. The celebration was electric, the plays were fire, the fans were locked in—but missing from the party? US women’s volleyball’s new head coach. And instead of showing up for one of the biggest moments in American women’s pro volleyball history, the guy dipped to catch a men’s college game.

Things got real spicy on X on April 13th when Avid Volley dropped a truth bomb, saying, “the women’s national team head coach being in Los Angeles at a UCLA men’s game instead of the LOVB finals really sums up the state of this federation.” And honestly? That hit home for a lot of fans. I mean, we’re talkin’ about the first-ever LOVB championship, and the newly appointed U.S. women’s volleyball head coach, Erik Sullivan, was nowhere in sight. Instead? He chose to chill courtside at a men’s college match in LA.

And fans didn’t hold back either—one user came in hot with, “Not to mention doesn’t he have a ton of ex players that he coached playing???” which, let’s be real, is so valid. Sullivan coached Madisen Skinner back in his Texas days, and she just snagged Finals MVP like a total boss. Oh, and let’s not forget Jordan Larson and Justine Wong-Orantes—two absolute legends—were out there on the court too, giving it their all in the league’s biggest game to date.

Like, this wasn’t some low-key exhibition… this was history in the making. But wait—this whole thing? Just the tip of the drama iceberg. Once the news spread that Sullivan skipped the women’s final for a men’s match, the takes came flying in like wild serves. Volleyball fans across the board were low-key (okay, high-key) heated, calling out how symbolic this move felt.

Volleyball fans express their frustration over the coach’s absence!

The conversation on X just kept going, and more fans jumped in with their own hot takes. One user straight-up asked, “they’re backing a different, new league tho, right? seems odd otherwise” and Avid Volley didn’t hold back, replying, ‘”backing” is probably more correct. they’ve said the same thing for all three (so they’re not really backing any). they dont have financial (or any other sort) investment in any of the leagues afaik.’ And while all this was going down online, Erik Sullivan was chilling courtside in LA, catching UCLA’s No. 2 men’s volleyball squad snag a big dub over No. 7 BYU in four tough sets at Pauley Pavilion.

Cooper Robinson was feeling it with 17 kills, Zach Rama and Sean Kelly hit double digits too, and setter Andrew Rowan hit a wild career milestone—over 3,000 assists, becoming just the 10th Bruin ever to do it. The Bruins rolled through sets one, three, and four, and while the Cougars stole the second, UCLA made sure to bounce back with that signature West Coast energy. But even with all that action, fans weren’t buying it—someone dropped the mic with, “This is absolutely unacceptable!” And yeah, after skipping the historic first LOVB final—where his own former players were putting on a show—it’s safe to say fans felt that sting real deep.

Another user tried was not as hard on the coach.“Not an excuse for Sullivan but if he was on the ’95 team that won a title they had a reunion for them and the ’75 team. But assistant coaches could have attended,” they wrote. But c’mon, it’s only been a hot minute since Erik Sullivan got handed the big keys to the U.S. Women’s National Team castle back in January. And not just any handoff—he’s stepping in after Karch Kiraly, the legend with a blinged-out legacy of Olympic medals and a world title. With the VNL kicking off in June and Rio calling, the clock’s tickin’ loud.

John Speraw even said it himself—this hire wasn’t just about picking a name; it was a race against time to get the right brain on board before the team hits the court. And look, Sullivan’s résumé is stacked—Olympic stints, scouting for the girls’ program, coaching at Nebraska and Colorado, and leading junior teams too. So yeah, he’s been around the volleyball block. But skipping the LOVB finals where your former players are literally making history? That didn’t sit right. Fans summed it up best with, “That’s really sad. Like really sad and pathetic.”