Big Ten Volleyball Preview – Part 1

Rutgers

2024 record: 6-25 (1-19, Big-10/18th place)

Head coach Caitlin Schweihofer enters her sixth season leading Rutgers volleyball. In full seasons, Rutgers has won two conference games twice, so they have a history of being at the bottom of the rankings.

They do return most of their kills leaders as well as their senior setter, Aly Borellis. With veteran leadership, perhaps they can stay out of being last place in the conference.

Northwestern

2024 record: 5-23 (3-17 Big-10/17th place

2024 was Tim Nollan’s first season as the Wildcats head coach. Last summer, I had this to say about NU volleyball: “2024 will be a bumpy rebuilding year, and expectations should be understandably low for Northwestern.”

NU has not listed a roster yet for this season. They most recently added undergraduate transfer 6-5 MB Gabrielle Gerry from South Carolina, 6-1 R-Sr. MB Bella Simkus from Colorado, and 6-4 Gr. MB Beste Ayhan from Bradley. Nollan knows how to rebuild a program, so we should see some improvement this season.

Iowa

2024 record: 10-22 (4-16 Big-10/16th place)

The Hawkeyes continue to be historically bad in volleyball. Head coach Jim Barnes has been in build mode since 2022 and has taken modest steps toward that. After all, Iowa won no conference games in 2023, but just because you’re no longer in the cellar doesn’t mean you have made substantive improvements. On the other hand, it’s so very difficult to play in the same conference as Purdue, Penn State, Wisconsin, and Nebraska, and beat those teams, because unless lightning has struck you’re not going to.

Iowa has a young team in 2025, with 12 of the 19 players being underclassmen. Moreover, all of their freshmen are OH or MB. That’s where the needs are on this team, and Iowa can improve if they have found talent in these youngsters.

Maryland

2024 record: 14-17 (5-15 Big-10/15th place)

The Terps slipped a bit from the previous few years. It was not a precipitous drop and won’t put head coach Adam Hughes in deep water, as he has been the coach since 2018.

Maryland has brought in offensive help from the transfer portal: R-So. 6-2 OH Olivia Ruy from Arkansas, Jr 6-2. OH Haley Melby from Kentucky, and Sr. 6-1 R(ight) S(ide) Ajack Malual from Tennessee.

The Terps lose their top two offensive weapons in Samantha Schnitta and Sam Csire, but return their next top hitters, Jrs. Sydney Bryant and Eva Rohrbach. They lost all of their setters from last season and brought in Annika Sokol from UTSA to help freshmen Nikki Tawil and Lilly Wagner.

Michigan State

Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

2024 record: 13-18 (6-14 Big-10/14th place)

Head coach Leah Johnson was not able to improve the Spartans as they would have liked, so she stepped down after three seasons and MSU has a new head coach, Kristen Kelsay. She was an MSU captain from 2010-13, and most recently worked with the setters and led recruiting efforts for the Golden Gophers. This is her first head coach position.

The Spartans lost three of their five best hitters to the portal, but still have Jrs. 6-4 MB Zuzanna Kulig and 6-2 OH Taylah Holdem. Their primary setters in 2024 were both seniors, but Jr. Cameron Berger returns and a pair of freshmen have been brought in.

In last year’s look at the Spartans, I thought that (on paper anyway) they looked primed to rise in the rankings. It would appear that the MSU Athletic Dept. thought the same, so when it didn’t happen then Johnson’s brief era ended. Kelsay will have a honeymoon period, but it won’t last long, and she’ll be expected to produce results.

Ohio State

Doral Chenoweth / USA TODAY NETWORK

2024 record: 14-16 (7-13 Big-10/13th place)

Ohio State had a very modest overall improvement in their overall record from 2024 and fell a bit in the conference rankings, but it doesn’t appear to be enough for head coach Jen Flynn Oldenburg to be let go ahead of a sixth season with the Buckeyes. A couple of assistants have left the program and two more have been brought in, and OSU volleyball fans will just have to wait and see what that yields.

OSU lost all of their hitters either to graduation or the transfer portal. They do retain their setter, Jr. Mia Tuman, and their defense did not suffer the same loss that the offense did. It’s too early to tell how the Buckeyes will do with new coaching and new offensive players, and this might be better left to a mid-season review.

UCLA

2024 record: 14-15 (8-12 Big-10/T-10th place)

Head coach Alfee Raft is entering his third year leading the Bruins. His first year ended with an 18-12 (10-10, Pac-12) record, so UCLA fell off a bit in their first season in the Big Ten.

The Bruins keep some of their offense; Jr. 6-0 OH Cheridyn Leverette, So. 6-2 OH Kiki Horne, but they lost Gr. Leilani Dodson. They also lost Grace Olson to a medical retirement (chronic knee injury). UCLA has an excellent mix of veterans and underclassmen in all their positions. All of their MBs are 6-4 or 6-5. This is a team that’s primed to rise significantly in the rankings in 2025 – what they have on paper jumps at you and I can’t imagine that not being the case.

Michigan

2024 record: 18-13 (8-12 Big-10/T-10th place)

In her second season last year, head coach Erin Virtue improved considerably from the dumpster fire she was handed when she took over the program in 2023. She has the Wolverines going in the right direction, but can she continue the momentum?

Michigan lost their best hitter, So. 6-1 OH Valentina Vaulet to Oregon, while Sr. 6-4 MB Jacque Boney graduated. They keep Gr. 5-11 OH Allison Jacobs and Sr. 6-2 MB Serena Nyambio. Michigan has recruited well and used the transfer portal well, so offense does not appear to be an issue.

The Wolverines bring back their setter, Jr. Morgan Burke, and while they have a couple of underclassmen to go along with her, Burke will be far and away their primary setter. They also return their Gr. libero, Maddi Cuchran.

Indiana

2024 record: 15-15 (8-12 Big-10/T-10th place)

After a record volleyball season in 2023, Hoosiers volleyball dropped in 2024. Although it’s a bit like reading tea leaves to understand why, the most glaring statistic is probably the team kill percentage. For example, in 2024 Oregon’s kill percentage was .261 against an opponent average of .173. Indiana’s kill percentage was .209 against an opponent average of .243.

Indiana returns all of their heavy hitters, and they have five freshmen coming in that represent the #14 signing class in the nation. Libero Ramsey Gary transferred to Texas and setter Camryn Haworth graduated. Indiana’s roster has three setters and no liberos listed, so the defense is an area that will have to be worked out.