Kansas State University Volleyball

Jason Mansfield, who has been a part of seven NCAA Final Fours and one national championship during stints at Stanford and Washington, enters his third season at the helm of the Kansas State volleyball program after being selected as the ninth head coach on Dec. 27, 2022. In two seasons, Mansfield boasts a career mark of 26-28 (.481) and owns an 18-18 (.500) record in Big 12 action, including six wins over Top 25 opponents. Most notably, he led K-State to a historical sweep over No. 3 and reigning national champion Texas in 2023. From an individual standpoint, Mansfield has helped guide three Wildcats to four AVCA All-Region honors and four players to five All-Big 12 Conference accolades, including four-time All-Big 12 selection Aliyah Carter. In 2023, the outside hitter earned AVCA All-American honorable mention recognition – the first All-American for Mansfield as a head coach. Under Mansfield, the Wildcats have enjoyed great success in the classroom in addition to on the court. K-State has garnered 12 Big 12 All-Academic honors, while the Wildcats have accumulated six Academic All-District distinctions. The Wildcats have also earned the prestigious AVCA Academic Team Award (3.3 team GPA or higher) following the 2023 season. Libero Mackenzie Morris notched the Big 12 Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2022-23, becoming the first athlete in league history to earn the achievement twice. In Mansfield’s second season at the helm, the 2024 K-State volleyball team finished

K-State head volleyball coach Jason Mansfield has added Andrew Mabry as an assistant coach to the staff in February of 2024. Mabry will work with the setters...

Ashlyn Lovett enters her first season on the coaching staff after playing four standout seasons at Georgia Southern. Lovett made her mark as a four-year starting libero for the Eagles, where she became the first player in program history to be named Sun Belt Freshman of the Year – and the first in any conference to earn that title for the Eagles. A five-time Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week, Appearing in 87 matches during her time at GSU, Lovett holds the school record for most digs in a single match (45) and three-set match (31). Across 322 career sets, she totaled 1,403 digs (4.36 per set), 267 assists (0.83 per set), 97 service aces (0.30 per set), and 100 points. She capped her standout career second in school history in digs per set (4.60) and second on the all-time digs list (1,950). Lovett played high school volleyball at St. James Academy under coach Nancy Dorsey, where she established herself as one of the top defensive players in the state. As a senior co-captain alongside her twin sister, Olivia, Lovett racked up 491 digs during the 2020 season, ranking fifth in Kansas. She averaged 6.5 digs per set (fourth in Kansas) and 16.4 digs per match (second in the state), helping lead the Thunder to a 28-4 record and a peak national ranking of No. 9 in the USA Today Super 25. St. James finished the season ranked second in Kansas, and Lovett was named to the 2020 All-State 5A Tournament Team, the AVCA All-Region Team, and earned first-team All-EKL honors. As a junior i

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Fletcher Larsen was promoted to Director of Volleyball Operations at Kansas State, entering his fourth season on the coaching staff. He previously served three seasons as a student manager for the Wildcats, contributing to 41 team victories including a program-record five wins over top-25 opponents in 2023. In his new role, Larsen leads the program's day-to-day operations and recruiting efforts, manages team travel and summer camps, and assists with video and analytics. He has become skilled at analytics and will continue helping with statistics in practice, scouting and matches. During his time as a student manager, his responsibilities included scouting preparation, data analytics, recruiting visit coordination and camp operations. A native of Valentine, Nebraska, Larsen graduated from K-State with a degree in agriculture technology management in 2025.

Jill Shields, a 23-year veteran of the K-State Athletics Department, was promoted to Deputy Athletics Director in 2017 after serving as Executive Associate Athletics Director for Student Services since 2015. In her role, Shields oversees the daily internal operation of the entire athletics department and also serves as the department's senior woman administrator. She oversees the day-to-day operation of the football program while also serving as the sport administrator for women's basketball and volleyball. In fall 2019 Shields was appointed to a five-year term on the NCAA Women's Basketball Committee. She will also serve as the Big 12 Chair of the Senior Woman Administrator's for the 2022-23 academic year. Shields had previously worked as Senior Associate, Associate and Assistant Athletics Director and Associate Director of Student Services with stints directing the support services for football, women's basketball and volleyball, as well as Life Skills programming. Shields played a pivotal role in the academic success of the Wildcats' 16 athletic programs, leading K-State to a stretch of multi-year high marks in the Big 12 in all-sports graduation rates as well as maintaining a national standard with the NCAA mandated APR multi-year reports. In 2004 she served as the Region IV Chair of the National Association of Academic and Student-Athlete Development Professionals. Shields came to K-State after working at Wichita State for six years, including the final year as a senior

Head coach Jason Mansfield and the Kansas State volleyball program announced the addition of Kelly O’Connor to the staff on February 7, 2025. O’Connor serves...

Steve Astor, who brought over 20 years of coaching experience that spans over various sports and levels, was named the associate head coach in January 2023 as the first hire under head coach Jason Mansfield. Astor serves as the Wildcats’ defensive coordinator and primary lead for player development. With Astor leading the defense, three players have garnered all-conference honors: middle blocker Sydney Bolding, libero Mackenzie Morris, and most recently, libero Ella Larkin. Last season, the Wildcats' defense led the Big 12 and ranked 29th nationally with 16.75 digs per set, totaling 1,776 digs — the third-most in the conference. Individually, senior libero Ella Larkin ranked third in the Big 12 in both total digs (492) and digs per set (4.62), placing 51st and 71st nationally in those categories, respectively, while earning Second Team All-Big 12 honors. Middle blocker Brenna Schmidt averaged 1.04 blocks per set, tying for 10th in the conference. In 2023, Astor orchestrated a K-State defense that led the Big 12 Conference with an opponent attack percentage of .170, while the Cats were second in the Big 12 Conference in digs per set (15.24). K-State was fourth in the league in blocks per set (2.52) and sixth in total blocks (244.0). The Wildcats’ defense was led by starting libero Mackenzie Morris and middle blocker Sydney Bolding. Bolding became the program’s first-ever draft pick, as she was selected 11th overall by the Grand Rapids Rise in the inaugural Pro Volleyball Feder