Michigan State University women volleyball head coach Leah Johnson giving a post match debrief at the Breslin Center on Sep.11, 2024
After the 2017 season, MSU's women’s volleyball was in a lull. Five years later, in 2022, head coach Leah Johnson arrived and changed the culture.
In just over two years, Johnson has made a name for herself at MSU and transformed the Spartans into a group with a different energy and set of expectations than that of years prior.
At the end of the 2022 season, Johnson completed her first milestone, leading MSU to the most wins by a first-year head coach since 1974, when Annelies Knoppers' squad achieved 20 wins.
In 2022, the team averaged more kills per set (12.1), assists per set (11.2), fewer setting errors and more digs per set (12.7) than its opponents and was more successful in these categories than in seasons prior.
2022 record
Overall: 13-18
Conference: 4-16
Home: 8-8
Away: 3-10
Neutral: 2-0
2022 was a year for Johnson and the Spartans to lay a foundation. They didn't have much success on the court, but they were still building as a team.
Then, in 2023, Johnson and the Spartans picked up 17 wins, the most by any MSU volleyball team since 2019. Michigan State also had nine conference wins, its most since 2017.
By the end of the season, Michigan State averaged more kills per set (12.6), assists per set (11.5), aces per set (1.4) and digs per set (13.5) than its opponents and had a more successful attacking percentage than the season prior.
2023 record
Overall: 17-14
Conference: 9-11
Home: 9-6
Away: 6-7
Neutral: 2-1
2024 record
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Thus far in the 2024 season, Johnson has led the Spartans to a 6-3 record while maintaining a 4-1 home record before Big Ten play begins.
Michigan State’s most recent game, a four-set win against Purdue-Fort Wayne at home, showcased what Johnson has implemented into the program: consistency. The passing was stable, Johnson said, and the team "point-managed fairly well" to earn every kill.
With games against Duke and North Carolina on the horizon before Big Ten play, Johnson is looking at one game at a time.
"I'm just trying to win every game. I just focus on the game in front of me," Johnson said. “We just have to keep getting better. We just have to keep building on (our skills)."
Under Johnson, MSU's communication skills has made it a tough team to beat. Johnson said the Spartans have had improved communication between the front and back rows and there is a lot of team chemistry between the players.
Standout athletes like outside hitters Akasha Anderson and Taylah Holdem and libero Nalani Iosia have helped shape the new-look Spartans.
This season, Anderson is averaging over 3.5 kills per set and has accumulated 114 points so far. Holdem has put up 59 total points and averaged 2.81 kills per set.
Iosia, the main libero for Michigan State, has averaged four digs per set — 108 total — and assisted on 187 points.
The team has started to become "more fluid and focused," Johnson said, regarding its energy and quality execution. The statistics back that up.
Before every home game, the Spartans play a video that draws a clever parallel between volleyball and a chess match. With many games still ahead this season, fans can see exactly how Johnson, the queen, will strategically use her pawns, aiming for even greater success and potentially reaching more milestones.
