Many LSU students are unaware of the powerhouse beach volleyball program calls Baton Rouge home. In just seven years, LSU has became one of the most prestigious beach volleyball programs in the country.
The success didn’t come without hard work, as the team worked their way from the ground up. The Tigers went from barely knowing how to play on the sand, to being ranked No. 1 in the nation last year. So how were they able to sit on the throne of beach volleyball last year?
Well it all starts with good coaching, and LSU has one of the best in National Coach of the Year, Russell Brock, and the girls, of course. LSU started its official varsity sport sand volleyball program at the beginning of Spring 2014.
Fran Flory, LSU indoor volleyball coach, also led the sand team from 2014-2016, before Brock took over in 2017, when sand volleyball was still new to many colleges, not just LSU at the time.
In 2015, the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association decided to add beach volleyball to its program and the teams would begin playing in the Spring of 2016. At that time, only eight other schools took part in this program, with LSU being one of them.
In the blink of an eye, Brock brought the team to the next level. LSU beach volleyball went from a new and good program to a top contender in the conference.
He worked with many freshmen who are now seniors and referred to them as the “dream team,” helping them to grow into the players they are today. Last year, in the 2020 season, they climbed all the way to the No. 1 ranking, before COVID-19 put a halt to the season.
We can tell that Brock has had his eyes set on that No. 1 ranking since the beginning, and he accomplished what he fought for.
One of the players who was known for helping the LSU team to that No. 1 ranking is Taryn Kloth.
She led the team to win many sets during last year’s season. Unlike most of the girls who came here as freshmen, Kloth was an athlete at Creighton for most of her college experience until 2019.
Kloth credited the family aspect that the program exemplified as the selling point to getting her into Baton Rouge.
“The biggest thing for me is the people down here,” Kloth said. “Everyone cares for you and wants to see you have great success, and it is an honor to be an LSU athlete.”
The team is composed of 28 girls who are eager to play and hungry to win this 2021 season. The program has changed since she has been here, and they will take what they learned from last season to apply it to this one, hoping to strike similar success as before.
Kloth did not shy away from the idea that the competition will be hard, but she is eager for all the season will entail.
“Everyone is going to have a super team because all of the schools’ seniors came back,” Kloth said. “It is going to be a battle for every single game that we play.”
The LSU program has come a long way over the past few seasons, but they are far from where they want to be. The previously ranked No. 1 team is hungry for a championship. This might be their year.
