Coach John Cook has bolstered his roster with the addition of Missouri graduate transfer Kayla Caffey, who signed with Nebraska on Thursday.
The 6-foot middle blocker redshirted in 2016, then received a medical redshirt after missing the entire 2018 season with a leg injury. She’ll have two seasons of eligibility remaining at Nebraska.
"Kayla will bring a lot of offensive firepower to our team," Cook said in a release. "She was one of the leading hitters in the SEC and we like the fact that she's a graduate student and has a lot of experience. She played at a storied high school program, Mother McAuley in Chicago. She's got an offensive-oriented game and is very athletic. We're excited about the impact she can make with our team.”
Coffey announced her transfer on Twitter on Wednesday.
So excited to announce that I will be continuing my volleyball career at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and pursuing my M.A in Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education with an emphasis in Early Literacy! #GBR #B1G pic.twitter.com/jSUwte9Qww
— Kayla Caffey (@_lifeofkay) May 5, 2020
Caffey was a key part of Missouri’s rotation as a redshirt freshman in 2017, playing in all 131 sets and averaging 1.54 kills and 0.99 blocks per set while hitting .323. She earned SEC All-Freshman Team honors and was fifth in the conference with 130 total blocks. Against Ole Miss on Oct 8, 2017, Caffey notched 10 kills on .909 hitting, tying the second-best single-match hitting percentage in Missouri history.
After recovering from the injury that cost her the 2018 season, Caffey played in 93 of Missouri’s 111 sets this past season. She averaged 1.77 kills and 0.88 blocks per set while hitting a team-best .408 (second in the SEC and ninth nationally). The Tigers went 22-8 and made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament before falling to the Huskers in four sets. Caffey did not play in Missouri’s last four matches including its two tournament matches. She posted a career-high 13 kills on .684 hitting against Alabama on Nov. 8.
Caffey produced 286 kills and 98 blocks while hitting .461 as a senior at Mother McCauley. She was named an Under Armour Honorable Mention All-American and was ranked No. 71 in the 2016 class by PrepVolleyball.com. She helped lead Mother McCauley to the Illinois state championship during her sophomore season. Caffey played her club volleyball with Michio Chicago Volleyball Academy.
Cook told Hail Varsity last month that he was still looking to add depth at either middle blocker or outside hitter. Caffey joins returning starters Lauren Stivrins and Callie Schwarzenbach and 2020 signee Kalynn Meyer at middle blocker. Abby Johnson, a walk-on signee from Illinois, is also listed as a middle blocker/opposite hitter. Freshman Riley Zuhn split her time between outside hitter and middle blocker during the 2019 season but will focus on outside hitter moving forward. Fallon Stutheit, a walk-on middle-blocker from Johnson, Nebraska, transferred to UNK after redshirting in 2019.