We sat in the gym in Anaheim last May after a U.S. National Team practice, and I asked Kayla Haneline if she knew that she was the only player in the room who did not play for what is now Power 4 school (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC). She didn't.
But she was.
Regardless, she knew that being a player who went to Northern Iowa and then toiled for seven years in Hungary, Finland and Germany, "doesn't come with a lot of branding or name recognition."
Meet Kayla Haneline, soon to be one of the players leading the charge for LOVB Atlanta Volleyball, and someone who has earned her place every step of the way.
The 6-2 product of Plattsmouth, Nebraska – a small town south of Omaha – is the poster child for volleyball sticktoitiveness. Bobbi Peterson saw that quality when she recruited Kayla to the University of Northern Iowa (UNI). Kayla redshirted in 2012, then got better and better each of the next four years.
"I can't imagine what I would have thought then, playing for Northern Iowa and playing for Bobbi, but this is definitely a dream come true," Kayla said that day in Anaheim. "I would have never guessed that coming from Northern Iowa I would have ended up here. But I guess it shows that anyone who puts in the work and has the dedication and when you want something you go get it."
Fast forward to the eve of the LOVB inaugural season and the veteran middle blocker is ready to get going and, if you will, increase some of that name recognition. More on that later.
Kayla, two inches shorter coming out of high school, was a Nebraska state high jump champion and set school records in the long jump. She played club for Nebraska Impact and Nebraska Elite and had other college offers, but UNI was the right fit.
"Bobbi was exactly the coach I needed at the time, and she taught me a lot. Kalani Mahi was the middles coach, he's since retired from college coaching, but he taught me a lot, too.”
After UNI, her path upward started with playing for Vasas Óbuda in Budapest, Hungary. Then she went to Finland for two seasons, the first with LP Kangasala and then LP Viesti, where she tore an abdominal muscle.
"It's not fun. You don't know how much you use your abs until you tear one. I'm a very happy person and not being able to laugh was horrible."
She laughed at that.
But, Kayla noted, "That time I was out made me love the sport even more."
She moved on to Germany, playing a season each in Vilisbiburg, Suhl, Dresdner and last year for Allianz MTV Stuttgart. Among her honors: the Bundesliga's Best Middle Blocker in 2022 and Best Server in 2023. That same year, she was part of the U.S. team that won gold at the 2023 NORCECA Pan Am Cup Final Six and bronze in the 2023 NORCECA Pan American Cup.
"With a German title under her belt last season with Stuttgart, Kayla is primed to have an impact in Atlanta," said LOVB Vice President of Sport Tom Hogan, who recruited her for the new league. "Kayla is easy to root for, her passion for the sport shines through in every play. Her ascension as a pro athlete has been amazing to see, and we are thrilled to have her back in the U.S. representing LOVB."
In spring 2024, Kayla returned to the USA gym. She didn't make the Volleyball Nations League roster but "I was very honored and excited to be there,” she said.
She hopes to be there again and again in each of the next four years, too. "I obviously didn't make the Olympic cut, but future goals are still in place. There's another Olympics here in L.A. in [2028]."
After training with the national team, Kayla, who turned 30 in July, headed to Wyoming to visit her sister and "give my body an active recovery that it needed."
Eventually, she packed up a trailer and headed to Atlanta, joking that it was quite different than taking two large suitcases to Europe.
"It was a very different start to the fall for me."
Not that she was going to take the season off. No, the opportunity arose to play in Athletes Unlimited in fall.
"I heard so many good things from the people who had been in Athletes Unlimited and that they loved it and had a great time. I wanted to be a part of that."
There was a volleyball benefit, too: Kayla got to play for five weeks in a pro venture in which individual success matters. She finished 17th on the 44-player leaderboard, which resulted in a nice bonus.
"That helped pay the rent," she said with a laugh. "I don't know if I would have finished higher, but I was sick the last two games and couldn't get points. Honestly, I was pretty happy with the overall ranking. I set a goal of finishing top 15 and missed it by two spots. For the first year – again, not having that name recognition – I didn't play much that first week.
Interestingly, she finished just behind setter Madi Bugg, now her teammate at LOVB Atlanta.
"I love her. She's such a sweetheart."
But she doesn't know the other three middles on the Atlanta roster, Polish 6-footer Iga Wasilewska; 6-3 Tia Jimerson who played at Ohio and then in Dresdner last year after Kayla moved to Stuttgart; and 6-3 Magda Jehlárová, the former Washington State from Czechia who is a first-year pro.
"It's fun to get to know the personality of the players you've played against," Kayla said.
She said the LOVB practices have been high level and she's really enjoyed playing for head coach Paulo Coco.
"I love the way he's structuring things."
Being home also gives Kayla a chance to start another new venture.
"I'm creating a business to help younger volleyball athletes. It's not started yet, but we're actively in the process of getting there.
"It's to help young athletes set goals and pursue their dreams kind of the same way I did. You may not be the standout star athletes who's getting all the recognition scholarship offers, but you just love the sport and really want to continue playing in college. I want to help athletes to realize how they can continue to do that."
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