The volleyball world is in mourning this week after former Texas Longhorns volleyball player Pilar Marie Victoria Lopez was discovered dead in her Turkey apartment on Thursday.
She was just 28.
Lopez, who played for the Texas Longhorns during the 2013 and 2014 seasons, was currently playing professionally for Nilüfer Belediyespor when the tragedy occurred.
According to the Turkish news website Haberler.com, Victoria’s body was discovered in her apartment when officials went to check on her after she failed to show up for team training on Thursday morning.
Repeated attempts to contact were made before cops were sent out. Authorities made entry with the help of a locksmith and found Lopez unresponsive in her bed.
Pilar Marie Victoria Lopez is best remembered for helping the Texas Longhorns reach two Final Fours in her two seasons.
The volleyball blog Volleytrails released a statement on Facebook:
Click on ‘Follow Us’ and get notified of the most viral NCAA stories via Google! Follow Us
“It is with a heavy heart that we share the tragic news of Pilar Marie Victoria, a 29-year-old Puerto Rican national team player, who was set to play for Nilüfer Belediyespor in Türkiye this season. She was found dead in her apartment just hours ago. The circumstances surrounding her death are still unknown, and an investigation has been initiated by the prosecutor’s office,” the page wrote.
Pilar Marie Victoria Lopez Was A Star Playing Volleyball
Pilar Marie Victoria Lopez tragically lost her life for unknown reasons after she was found deceased in her apartment on Thursday.
Before her untimely death, she played college volleyball for the Texas Longhorns and the Arkansas Razorbacks.
In addition, Pilar competed for the Puerto Rico women’s national volleyball team, the Puerto Rico Youth National Team, and the Puerto Rico Junior National Team.
According to her Wikipedia, she won the bronze medal in 2010 while competing with the Puerto Rico Youth National Team at the 2010 NORCECA Youth Championship in Guatemala.
Five years later, in 2015, Pilar Marie Victoria Lopez became one of the most prominent offensive players in the nation, as an outside hitter for the Arkansas Razorbacks.
She set the second-highest single kills record in Razorbacks history when she recorded 35 kills in a 5-set loss against Ole Miss in 2015.
Her efforts earned her All-SEC Team and AVCA All-Region South Team honors.
