The 2025 season marks the 50th anniversary of the UCF Knights’ Volleyball program.
In accordance with this landmark season, our own Eric Lopez and Bryson Turner have assembled a roster of 26 of the Knights’
best players over the 50 years of the program.
The criteria for this list are:
- The player must have at least played one season for UCF.
- At least one player must come from each decade of the program’s existence (1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s)
- Active UCF Players are not eligible
The team will be by positions.
Let the debates begin:
Outside Hitters:
Miriam Metzcus – 1991-1994
- Three-time All-ASUN First Team selection
- Led the Knights to consecutive ASUN titles (93-94), an appearance in the NIVC in 1993 and the program’s first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1994.
- 4th all-time at UCF in career kills (1,811) and digs (1,644)
- Holds the program record for the most career service aces (235) and aces per set (0.46).
- Ranks third in career matches played (141), fourth in sets played (510), sixth in kills per set (3.55) and fifth in digs per set (3.22).
- Inducted into UCF Athletics Hall of Fame in 2025.
Renata Menchikova – 1995-1997
- Led UCF in kills and aces in all three seasons she played at UCF (1995-1997)
- Led the team in digs in 1996 and 1997.
- Set the school record for career kills (2,151), which lasted until 2022, though she still holds the school record for kills per set (5.85).
- Third in career service aces (154) and service aces per set (0.42)
- Seventh in digs (1,192)
- Fourth in digs per set (3.24).
- Three-time first-team All-ASUN honoree
- Two-time AVCA All-Region selection (1995-1996).
- She was also named the ASUN Tournament MVP in 1995 and ASUN Player of the Year in 1996.
- One of five players (Bridson,Queisser, Harper, Sante) in program history to win both ASUN Player of Year (1995) and ASUN Tournament MVP (1994).
- Part of three ASUN Championship teams and made three NCAA Tournament appearances (1995-1997).
- Inducted into the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame in 2002
- Inducted into UCF Volleyball Ring of Honor in 2019.
Leyre Santaella Sante – 2000-2002
- ASUN Player of the Year and an All-Region Honorable Mention in 2002.
- Made the All-ASUN First Team twice (2001-2002) and made All-ASUN Second Team in 2000.
- ASUN Tournament MVP in 2001 and 2002
- Helping UCF win back-to-back ASUN Championships and trips to the NCAA Tournament.
- Ranks 5th all-time in kills with 1,497,
- 3rd in kills per set (4.52)
- Tied for 5th in aces (149).
- One of five players (Bridson,Menchikova, Harper, Quiesser) in program history to win both ASUN Player of Year and ASUN Tournament MVP.
Tanya Jarvis-Starrett – 2001-2004
- She was a second-team All-ASUN performer in 2003 and an ASUN All-Freshman selection in 2001.
- Part of the program’s three consecutive ASUN championships and NCAA tournament appearances from 2001-03
- 1,049 kills, 891 digs and 112 service aces.
- Ranks eighth all-time in aces per set (0.31).
- Inducted into UCF Volleyball Ring of Honor in 2022
Erin Campbell – 2006-2009
- One of six players in UCF history (along with Reneta Menchikova, Tyra Harper, Miriam Metzcus, Kia Bright and McKenna Melville) to have 1,000 kills and digs in a career and is the only player to accomplish it in the Conference USA era.
- Selected to the All-C-USA Second Team in 2009.
- Ranks tenth in program history in kills (1,207)
- Ranks ninth in digs (1,134) and in digs per set (2.66).
Angelica Crump – 2009-2013
- 2011 AVCA Honorable Mention All-American and AVCA All-Region First Team selection, the first Knight since Jenny Frank in 2003 to earn both honors.
- First-team All-CUSA in 2011, second-team All-CUSA in 2012
- Second-team All-AAC in 2013.
- 1,489 career kills ranks 6th in UCF history
- She also ranks ninth in career kills per set (3.32)
- Third in career solo blocks (80).
Jale Hervey – 2014-2016
- Three-time First Team All-AAC member (2014, 2015, 2016)
- Two-time All-Region performer.
- Fourth all-time in kills per set (3.93)
- Eighth all-time in kills (1,317), despite only playing three seasons.
- Part of the Knights’ AAC Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in 2014.
Kia Bright – 2014-2018
- An AVCA All-American Honorable Mention in 2014 selection
- Two-time All-Region selection (First Team in 2014 and Honorable Mention in 2017)
- Three-time First Team All-AAC pick (2014, 2016, 2017).
- Ranks seventh all-time in kills (1,368)
- Ranks Sixth in digs (1,221), seventh in digs per set (2.97)
- Ranks eighth in kills per set (3.33).
- One of six UCF Volleyball players all-time to record both 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs, along with Renata Menchikova, Tyra Harper, Miriam Metzcus, Erin Campbell and McKenna Melville.
Kristina Fisher – 2017-2019
- 2-time All-AAC 1st Team performer
- 2 AAC Championships (2018-2019)
- NCAA Tournament teams (2018-2019).
- 1,077 kills in her three seasons.
McKenna Melville – 2018-2022
- First UCF Knights Volleyball player to be named First Team All-American by the American Volleyball Coaches Association in 2022.
- Third Team All-American in 2021
- AVCA Honorable Mention in 2018, 2019, and Spring 2021.
- Three-time AAC Player of the Year
- 2018 AAC Freshman of the Year
- Five-time All-AAC First Team selection.
- All-time leader in kills with 2,563, which also ranks eighth all-time in NCAA Division I Volleyball history regardless of scoring era.
- Third-most career digs in school history with 1,650, the most by any non-Defensive Specialist or Libero player.
- Ranks second in program history in sets played (533), second in kills per set (4.80), tied for fifth in matches played (146), seventh in block solos (66), ninth in service aces (123) and 12th in total blocks (301).
- Led UCF to five straight AAC Championships, made five straight NCAA Tournaments, and made three trips to the Second Round (2019, 2021, 2022).
- In 2022, Received the Order of Pegasus, the most prestigious award any UCF student (athlete or not) can earn.
Middle Blockers:
Laura Smith – 1977-1979
- Two-time All-American (1977-1978) .
- Led UCF to a 55-0 mark in 1978 en route to the AIAW Small College National Championship.
- Inducted into the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame in 1999 and again in 2015 as part of the 1978 team.
- Honored by the program in 2017 when she was inducted into the UCF Volleyball Ring of Honor.
Emily Bridson – 1992-1993
- A-Sun Player of Year in 1993
- A-Sun 1st Team (1992-1993)
- A-SUN Tournament MVP in 1993
- 1st UCF player and one of five (Queisser,Menchikova, Harper, Sante) in program history to win both ASUN Player of Year and ASUN Tournament MVP .
- UCF Single Season Block Record with 187 in 1993
- 5th all-time at UCF in Blocks per set (1.16).
- A-SUN Championship in 1993.
Tyra Harper (Turner) – 1994-1997
- Earned First Team All-ASUN three times and All-ASUN third team in her freshman season (1994).
- Named the ASUN Tournament MVP twice (1996 and 1997) and was named ASUN Player of the Year in 1997.
- One of five players (Bridson,Menchikova, Queisser, Sante) in program history to win both ASUN Player of Year (1995) and ASUN Tournament MVP (1994).
- Led the Knights to four consecutive ASUN titles and four NCAA Tournament appearances (1994-1997), reaching the second round of the 1997 NCAA Tournament when UCF swept Clemson.
- Owns the school record for total blocks (631) and solo blocks (156).
- Ranks third all-time in kills (1,932), trailing only Renata Menchikova and McKenna Melville, and block assists (475).
- Inducted into the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame in 2004.
Piper Morgan – 1998-2001
- Part of two regular season ASUN Championships (1999 and 2001) as well as the 2001 A-Sun Tournament Champions.
- Three-time First Team All-ASUN performer (1999-2001)
- 1,103 kills along with 75 solo blocks, ranking fifth all-time. Morgan also ranks fifth in career block assists (364) and career total blocks (439) and sixth in career blocks per set (1.15) in UCF history.
Kaye-Alese Green – 2010-2014
- 2014 AVCA All-America Honorable Mention
- 2014 AVCA All-Region First-Team.
- 2014 American Athletic Conference First Team
- 2013 American Athletic Conference Second Team
- Key part of UCF’s 2014 American Athletic Conference Championship squad
DeLaina Sarden – 2011-2014
- AVCA All-American Honorable Mention (2012-2014), alongside three All-Region selections (2012-2014).
- CUSA’s Freshman of the Year in 2011
- AAC’s Player of the Year in 2014
- Ranks second in program history in career block solos (85), second in attack percentage (.383), fourth in block assists (377), fourth in total blocks (462) and ninth in blocks per set (1.04).
- Helped UCF win its first AAC Championship in 2014 and make the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003.
- Inducted into UCF Athletic Hall of Fame in 2023.
Setter:
Terri Hinton – 1986-1987
- 2- time All-New South Women’s Athletic All Conference 1st team (86-87)
Emily Queisser – 1992-1995
- Helped the Knights to three ASUN titles (1993-1995), part of a five-year ASUN title streak for the program, a 1993 NIVC appearance and two NCAA Tournament appearances (1994-1995).
- One of five players (Bridson,Menchikova, Harper, Sante) in program history to win both ASUN Player of Year (1995) and ASUN Tournament MVP (1994).
- Both Queisser and Renata Menchikova were the first in program history to get selected to an AVCA All-Region team when they both did so in 1995.
- All-time leader in games played (156) and assists (5,923). Three of her four seasons rank in the top four on the program’s single-season assists list.
- Ranks second in career aces (201), third in sets played (521), tied for fourth in aces per set (0.39) and seventh in digs (1,155).
Jenny Frank – 2000-2003
- Led UCF to three straight ASUN titles and NCAA Tournament berths from 2001-2003.
- Selected as the ASUN’s Player of the Year in 2003, All-ASUN First Team twice (2002-2003) and All-ASUN Second Team once (2001).
- AVCA All-Region team selection.
- First in program history to earn an AVCA All-America honorable mention honor in 2003.
- Ranks second in UCF history with 4,825 career assists.
- Tied for fifth in service aces (149), tied for fourth in aces per set (0.39), 10th in digs per set (2.53) and 11th in digs (1,111).
- Inducted into the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame in 2011.
Amber Olson – 2018-2022
- 3,992 total assists for her career, the third-most in program history behind only Emily Queisser (5,923) and UCF Athletic Hall of Famer Jenny Frank (4,825).
- Named the AAC’s Setter of the Year and selected to the All-AAC First Team in 2021 and 2022.
- Won five AAC Championships and made five NCAA Tournament appearances.
- Ranks sixth in program history in sets played (494), ninth in matches played (137), 10th in career digs (1,119) and 10th in career service aces (120).
Right Side:
Sharon Koskey – 1977-1978
- D2 All-American in 1978
- Part of 1978 National Title Team
- 1978 All Tournament Team
Karin Fischer – 1978-1979,1981-1982
- D2 All-American in 1978
- Part of 1978 National Title Team
- All-Sunshine State Team 1982
Anne-Marie Watson – 2017-2021
- Four-time All-AAC Conference (First Team in 2019-2021, Second Team In 2018)
- All-Region performer in 2021.
- UCF’s all-time leader in blocks assists (565),
- Ranks second in career total blocks (590) and is eighth in blocks per set (1.07).
- Ranks ninth all-time at UCF with 1,228 career kills
- Holds the record for the most sets played in program history (554) and tied for the fourth-most matches played (150).
- Part of UCF’s four consecutive AAC Championship and NCAA Tournament teams (2018-2021).
Libero:
Lindsey Whalen – 2000-2003
- 2003 A-Sun Libero of Year
- 6th all-time with 1,231 Digs
- 8th all-time in Digs per set (2.87)
- Part of the program’s three consecutive ASUN championships and NCAA tournament appearances from 2001-03
Meredith Murphy – 2009-2012
- Ranks second all-time in career digs (1,999), career digs per set (4.31), single season digs per set (4.48)
- 5th all-time in sets played (465)
- Program record for most digs in a single match (42).
Jordan Pingel – 2015-2018
- All-time leader in digs (2,262) and digs per set (4.72).
- Holds four of the top five single-season performances for digs, including the single-season record of 597 in 2018.
- All-AAC First Team selection, an AVCA All-Region team selection and an All-American honorable mention in 2018, becoming the first All-American libero in program history.
- Captained UCF to the first of five consecutive AAC titles in 2018, also enabling the program to host an NCAA Tournament regional and enter the AVCA Top 25 poll, which were both program firsts in the Division I Era.
The program itself celebrates its 50th anniversary on Friday as the Knights take on Arizona at 6 p.m., which also functions as an Alumni Knight.
