#13 Manu Johnsen going for a dig. Photo Credit: KSU Athletics
Winning is the only thing on the Owls’ minds entering the 2025 season.
After the 2024 season ended with a loss to eventual conference champion Western Kentucky in the Conference USA Tournament semifinals, Kennesaw State volleyball is ready for a better finish in 2025.
Outside hitter Manu Johnsen said she expects better this season.
“I feel like for me personally, I’m tired of getting fourth place,” she said. “I want to at least make the final this year.”
Johnsen was named to the C-USA All-Conference first-team in 2024 after she amassed 454 kills, which ranked third in the conference and 38 service aces to place her at ninth.
KSU will once again be led by coach Keith Schunzel, who is entering his thirteenth year with the team. Schunzel led the Owls to a 14-17 overall record in 2024, with a more impressive 10-8 record in conference play during the team’s first year in C-USA.
He said this year’s team could be special.
“This is the deepest roster we’ve had, maybe ever,” Schunzel said. “We have a lot of options and players who can play multiple positions, and this group is really motivated. We had a nice year last year, but I think this group wants more, and we’ve put ourselves in a position where that’s a realistic expectation.”
‘We’re just excited to see how much we can do and how much better we can keep getting,” he said.
The Owls are expected to return 15 players from their 2024 roster, including one of their captains, Leah Freeman. Freeman, a defensive specialist, played in all 31 matches and led the team with 409 digs in 2024, ranking her eighth in the conference.
Schunzel said he expects her to be a huge part of what the team does this season.
“She is definitely one of our captains, you know, she’s leading and consistent,” he said. “She’s our best passer and best defender, so she’ll definitely drive us from a ball handling standpoint.”
Freeman echoed her coach’s statements, saying the group’s goal is nothing short of a championship.
“Championship,” she said. “I think we have a good chance of winning of a championship, so continuing to be a leader is my goal and hopefully I can lead us into a championship.”
Another key returning player for KSU will be middle blocker Olivia Burrage. Burrage joined Johnsen as one of two Owls to be named to the C-USA 2025 preseason All-Conference team after a 2024 season where she played in all 31 matches and finished the season with 104 blocks to lead the Owls and rank seventh in the conference. She was also second in kills for KSU with 246, only trailing Johnsen.
Other returnees include setter Kaeley Walz, right side/middle blocker Haley Patterson and outside hitter/left side Kiernan Stamey. Walz played in all 31 matches as a freshman during 2024 and ranked third on team with 193 digs as well as first in assists with 606, ranking her eighth in the conference.
Patterson is coming off an ACL tear which caused her to miss the 2024 season, but played in 11 matches during her freshman season in 2023 where she tallied 17 total kills.
Schunzel said Stamey, who finished 2024 fourth on the team in kills with 208, is going to continue to improve entering her sophomore season.
“We moved her to the left side this year and she’s going to surprise a lot of people this year with how good of a player she’s becoming,” he said.
The Owls have welcomed just two newcomers to the roster for 2025 in outside hitter Hannah Pearce and defensive specialist/outside hitter Abby Kaminski.
Both Pearce and Kaminski are freshmen and while they are not expected to start, Schunzel said they will have chances to compete.
“They’re both doing great, they’re both doing awesome,” he said. “They’ll both have a chance to compete, and I don’t think either will be a starter because we’re so experienced and deep, but we’re really excited about the future for both of them.”
With the Owls having so much continuity and experience on the roster, Schunzel said the team will push to go as far as they can this season.
“This was probably the best offseason we’ve had in a very long time, and everyone has come in fit, motivated and with a really good mindset,” he said. “We’ve had a lot of players really develop here the last couple years so it’s a super exciting time and now we’re going to push hard and keep improving and see what we can do this season and how good this team can be.”
