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Photo by: Brayden Goins / Ball State Athletics

Photo by: Claire Witte / Ball State Athletics

Aniya Kennedy

Position:
Outside Hitter
Height:
6-0
Class:
Redshirt Sophomore
High School:
La Porte
Hometown:
La Porte, IN

Career Notes Entering 2025 Season:
• Played in 61 of a possible 64 matches over her Ball State career
• Has seen action in 216 of a possible 235 sets
• 2023 AVCA All-Midwest Region Honorable Mention
• 2023 MAC Freshman of the Year
• 2023 First Team All-MAC
• 2023 MAC All-Freshman Team
• 2024 Preseason All-MAC
• 2024 College Sports Communicators Academic All-District
• 2024 Academic All-MAC
• Four-Time MAC West Division Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 18, 2023, Oct. 9, 2024, Oct. 16, 2023 & Oct. 23, 2023)
• Scored 20-or-more kills in 10 matches, including a career-high 25 versus Akron (Oct. 13, 2023) and at Western Michigan (Nov. 3, 2023)
• Credited with double-digit kills in 38 career matches

2024 (R-So.): Earned second letter at Ball State ... College Sports Communicators Academic All-District … Academic All-MAC … played in 30 matches, making 12 starts … saw action in 102 of a possible 115 sets … ranked second on the squad with a 2.74 kills-per-set average while hitting .250 for the year … smashed a season-high 20 kills at Florida Atlantic (Aug. 31) and at Central Michigan (Oct. 5) … recorded double-digit kills in 12 matches, while earning at least one kill in 29 of the 30 matches she played … hit .300-or-better in 13 matches, led by a career-best .692 (9-0-13) mark at Eastern Michigan (Nov. 1) … also hit .600 (7-1-10) the following day versus EMU, while connecting at a .611 (11-0-18) clip versus Western Michigan (Nov. 15) and a .600 (10-1-15) rate of success versus Miami (Nov. 12) … credited with 43 total blocks, including seven solo and 36 assists … season-best four total blocks in two matches, while earning at least one block on 23 occasions … collected a career-high seven digs at Central Michigan (Oct. 4), while finishing the year with 44 total digs … served up her first career ace versus Bryant … handed out a pair of assists … named Preseason All-MAC.

2023 (R-Fr.): Earned first letter at Ball State ... AVCA All-Midwest Region Honorable Mention ... MAC Freshman of the Year … First Team All-MAC … MAC All-Freshman Team … played in 25 matches, making eight starts … saw action in 114 of a possible 120 sets … paced one of the most dynamic offenses in the MAC with a 4.12 kills-per-set average which ranked first in the league and 32nd among all NCAA Division I players … converted from the middle to outside due to team injuries and ranked third among all MAC players with 470 total kills, which was 31st nationally … blasted double-digit kills in 26 matches, with 20-or-more on eight occasions … the eight matches with 20-or-more kills is the eighth-best single season mark in program history, while her 470 total kills tie as the eighth-best … smashed a career-high 25 kills in the four-set win over Akron (Oct. 13), while tying the mark in a four-set contest at Western Michigan (Nov. 3) … finished the season with a .259 attack percentage, hitting .300-or-better in 11 matches … hit a season-best .556 (16-1-27) in the sweep of ETSU (Sept. 16), while adding a .457 (22-1-46) rate of success versus Clemson (Dec. 1) in the second round of the NIVC … ranked fourth on the team with 57 total blocks and a 0.50 blocks-per-set average … recorded at least one block in 24 matches with a career-high four total blocks on four occasions … named to the Bluejay Invitational All-Tournament Team.

2022: Redshirted at Ball State.

Phillips on Kennedy: Aniya is a fun player to watch. She attacks very high and very hard. She's played a variety of front row positions, but her blocking presence is what typically keeps her in the middle. I love how quick she gets on the ball and her ability to terminate against any blocker. She's not afraid to go nose to nose with anyone and I love her confidence. She will absolutely add a huge net presence to our team and I can't wait to start working with her!

Career Highlights: A four-year varsity letterwinner at La Porte for coach Jessica Dhoore … helped guide the Slicers to sectional championships in each of the past three years, as well as a 104-26 record over her career … All-Conference honoree as a sophomore and junior … picked up Academic All-State honors as a senior … earned the program's hitting award as a sophomore and blocking award as a sophomore and junior … finished her career with 1,225 kills, 308 total blocks, 363 digs and 52 aces … also earned three letters in tennis at La Porte.

Why Ball State: I chose Ball State because I loved the campus and how it is not too far from home.