Women's Volleyball

Friday Spotlight: Makenzie Thieme, Whittier Volleyball

Makenzie Thieme ’19 is notable for having – and being a part of – one of the greatest seasons in the history of the Whittier College women’s volleyball program. After transferring in from Mt. San Antonio College, Thieme made an immediate impact with the Poets during her junior season, leading them to a 10-6 SCIAC record. Although the Poets did not qualify for the SCIAC Postseason Tournament amid a stacked conference field that year, they did manage to achieve a national ranking as high as 30th at one point, and thus earned an at-large bid into the NCAA Division III Volleyball Tournament for the first time ever.
 
Thieme’s 346 kills that season led the team, and her 3.53 K/S ranked among the SCIAC’s elite. In fact, she stood out as the conference’s top outside hitter, leading all players at her position in total kills, kills per set, points, points per set, and attempts. For her efforts, she earned First-Team All-SCIAC honors and was subsequently named as a Division III All-West Region Team Honorable Mention by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA).
 
Thieme then put together an equally impressive senior year, posting comparable numbers with 364 kills and 3.47 kills per set while improving her hitting percentage to .208. For this, she was recognized as a two-time SCIAC Athlete of the Week and went on to earn Second Team All-SCIAC recognition.
 
After graduating from Whittier in 2019 with a B.A. in Chemistry, the Corona, Calif.-native immediately joined Head Coach Chris Duarte-McDermott’s staff as a graduate assistant. She went on to earn her Master’s in Education from Whittier, and has since continued to assist the Poets on a part-time basis while working as a substitute teacher in the Whittier Union High School District.
 

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