Wildcat Volleyball welcomes three new signees

The Weber State women's volleyball squad and Head Coach Jeremiah Larsen welcome three new signees.

Kaylie Ray
Hometown: Chandler, Arizona
Class: Senior
Position: Outside Hitter
Previous School: Utah State

Kaylie Ray spent the past four seasons as a Utah State Aggie and was a part of the Utah State volleyball program that won three-straight Mountain West championships. During the 2024 Utah State volleyball season, Ray appeared in 23 matches and started in four. She finished the season with 146 kills on a .181 hitting percentage along with 24 blocks and 17 digs. Ray recorded a career-high 20 kills against UNLV, posted a season-best .571 hitting percentage against Ohio and set a career-high five blocks at Southern California. During the season she recorded five matches with at least 10 kills. Ray received Academic All-Mountain West honors (2022, 2023) and Mountain West Scholar-Athlete honors (2021, 2022, 2023) during her time at Utah State.

Ray was a four-year letter winner at Chandler (Arizona) High School and as a senior recorded 259 kills, hitting .260 (259-109-578) on the season. She earned Under Armour All-American Honorable Mention honors (2020), AVCA High School All-Region 9 honors (2020) and finished her high school career with 691 kills, 348 digs, 132 assists, 94 aces and 87 total blocks. She played at the club level with AZ Storm Elite.

"We are very excited that Kaylie has chosen to be a part of Weber State Volleyball, " said Jeremiah Larsen. "She is a natural leader with a desire to be the best player she can be. She will make an immediate impact on our program, and I look forward to being a part of her development."

Melanie Merrill
Hometown: Oro Valley, Arizona
Class: Sophomore
Position: Outside Hitter
Previous School: Eastern Arizona College

Melanie Merrill spent the past two seasons at Eastern Arizona College. During her career at Eastern Arizona College she played in a total of 70 matches and recorded 706 kills, 579 digs and 108 total blocks. Merrill was a part of the 2024 ACCAC Region One Championship team and MVP of the ACCAC Region One Championship match. She also received ACCAC Player of the Year, 2024 ACCAC First Team All-Region, NJCAA First Team All-American, 2023 NJCAA Region One All-Region First Team and ACCAC Second Team All-Conference.

During her time at Ironwood Ridge High School Merrill was a letter winner in volleyball and beach volleyball and also received 2022-23 5A Southern Arizona All-Region First Team and 2022-23 5A Southern Offensive Player of the Year.

"We are so happy that Melanie wants to be a part of our program," said Jeremiah Larsen. "Her growth as a player at the Junior College level has been impressive. Melanie is very dynamic and athletic, but what sets her apart is her love of the game and her work ethic. Those two traits always lead to success in our gym and I'm looking forward to seeing her growth."

Ziya Munyer
Hometown: Rathdrum, Idaho
Class: Freshman
Position: Middle Blocker
Previous School: Lakeland High School

Ziya Munyer is an early graduate from Lakeland High School and played club volleyball for CPA. During her high school career, Munyer was a letter winner in volleyball all four years, track three years and basketball two years. Munyer was a back-to-back individual state champion in the triple jump in 2023 and 2024 and received 2023 Idaho All-State Second Team honors, 2023 All-League MVP, 2024 All-League volleyball, and was ranked Top 10 in Idaho overall blocks in 2023 and 2024. Academically, Munyer earned distinguished scholastic honors and outstanding scholastic honors four years straight.

"Ziya has all the characteristics of a Weber State Volleyball player," said Jeremiah Larsen. "She is tough, has a strong understanding of who she is, and is driven. All characteristics of players that have impacted our program. I believe her career will follow those great middle blockers that have come before her and I am grateful she has chosen to let us be a part of it."

Weber State University Athletics

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