COLUMBUS, Ohio—The Columbus Fury selected middle blocker Asjia O’Neal (Texas) with the first overall pick followed by the selections of outside hitter Reagan Cooper (Kansas), opposite Kendall Kipp (Stanford), outside hitter Jenaisya Moore (Tennessee), and middle blocker Emma Monks (Pittsburgh). These five players have combined for eight all-conference selections, nine All-American selections, two national champions and a two-time conference player of the year.
“We are super excited to select Asjia as the first-ever pick in history of the Pro Volleyball Federation. I think she brings a lot of intangibles when you are trying to build a culture and a franchise,” explained head coach Ángel Pérez. “What caught our attention was her relentlessness. She’s a proven winner, a tough competitor, and a fighter. At the end of the day, the things she can do on the volleyball court made her an obvious choice.”
Asjia O’Neal, daughter of NBA All-Star and Pacers legend Jermaine O’Neal, has been a major part of the success of the Longhorns volleyball program and became the program’s all-time blocks leader this fall. She was named an AVCA first team All-American in 2022, she is three-time first team All-Big 12 selection and was just named to the AVCA All-Region Team on December 5. She has totaled 909 career kills on a .402 hitting percentage and has 594 career blocks.
Reagan Cooper, played at Washington State and Texas Tech before finishing her career with the Jayhawks. She earned her first All-Big 12 selection this season and put up an impressive 29 kills on a .464 hitting percentage in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against Penn State. She has totaled 1,104 kills and 1,205 career points.
Kendall Kipp spent her entire career with the Cardinal and was a part of the 2019 National Championship team. She was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year the last two seasons and is a two-time AVCA Pacific North Region Player of the Year. She is a two-time AVCA All-American and totaled 1,656 kills and 586 digs over her career.
Jenaisya Moore will return to Columbus after spending her graduate season with the Tennessee Volunteers. She spent the four previous seasons with the Ohio State Buckeyes. At Tennessee she earned an All-SEC selection and an AVCA All-Region selection. She totaled 1,235 kills and 447 digs over her career.
Emma Monks has led the Pittsburgh Panthers to another national semifinal appearance this season and is one of the top blockers in the nation. She has averaged 1.57 blocks per set this season and has had a career-high 165 total blocks on the year. Monks played four years at Michigan State prior to her stint with Pitt and earned her first all-conference selection this season with a second team All-ACC award.
“This draft class is phenomenal,” head coach, Ángel Pérez, explained. “I felt like we got a couple of steals at the end of the second and start of the third rounds. Now, we need to put in the work to get them to Columbus and convince them that this is the right place for them. This class is talented, experienced, and has so much upside coming into the next level. They are all proven winners and at the end of the day that is the type of culture we want to create and build here in Columbus.”
All five players will be invited to the Fury’s three-week preseason camp beginning on Tuesday, January 2.
For more information on the 2024 season or to purchase season tickets, visit columbusfury.com or call 614-380-FURY.
For media inquiries and interviews contact Cassie Kelley at ckelley@columbusfury.com or Justin Holbrock at justin@irvinpr.com.
ABOUT THE COLUMBUS FURY
The Columbus Fury is a women’s professional volleyball team in Columbus, OH, and is an inaugural member of Pro Volleyball Federation, the premier women’s professional volleyball league in North America. The Fury are the first major women’s professional sports team in Columbus, the capital city, and the most populous city in Ohio, and the second most-populous city in the Midwest (behind only Chicago). The Fury play their home matches at Nationwide Arena in downtown Columbus. The Fury’s 2024 season begins on Thursday, January 25, at the Grand Rapids Rise. The first home match is Wednesday, February 21. Tickets for all Columbus Fury matches can be purchased by visiting ColumbusFury.com.