Asjia O'Neal

Last updated

Asjia O'Neal
Asjia O'Neal playing for the Columbus Fury.jpg
O'Neal in 2024
Personal information
Born (1999-10-23) October 23, 1999 (age 26)
Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Height6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
College / University Texas (2018–2023)
Volleyball information
Position Middle blocker
Current club LOVB Austin
Number7
Career
YearsTeams
2024 Columbus Fury
2025– LOVB Austin
National team
2023– Flag of the United States.svg United States

Asjia O'Neal (born October 23, 1999) is an American professional volleyball player for LOVB Austin. She played college volleyball for the Texas Longhorns and won back-to-back NCAA championships in 2022 and 2023.

Contents

Early life

O'Neal was born to National Basketball Association (NBA) player Jermaine O'Neal and his wife Mesha. [1] She practiced basketball with her father after fourth grade and took up volleyball in seventh grade in 2012 after moving from Miami to Dallas. [1] She played three years of varsity high school volleyball at Carroll Senior High School in Southlake, Texas. [2] As a high school sophomore, she committed to the University of Texas at Austin. [1] [3]

O'Neal was born with a heart murmur and mitral valve leak, for which she underwent open-heart surgery at age 13 and again after her freshman season of college. [1] [4] [5]

College career

O'Neal redshirted her first year at Texas in 2018. [6] She averaged a hitting percentage of .413 to start her first season, while having a worsening mitral valve leak and a new tricuspid valve leak that required a second open-heart surgery in January 2020. [1] [7] That summer, she helped organize campus activism to rename landmarks and build statues of former black students during the George Floyd protests. [1] [6] She helped Texas reach the final of the 2020 NCAA tournament held in the spring of 2021. [6] She received the Honda Inspiration Award for the 2020 season. [1] [8]

O'Neal helped the Longhorns win the 2022 NCAA championship alongside fellow first-team All-Americans Logan Eggleston and Zoe Fleck. [9] [10] She averaged a career-high .443 hitting percentage that season. [11] She returned for a sixth year and led Texas to defend its title at the 2023 NCAA championship. [12]

Professional career

O'Neal was drafted first overall in the first Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF) draft in December 2023. [13] In January 2024, she signed with the Columbus Fury. [14] In July 2024, it was announced O'Neal had signed with LOVB Austin for LOVB Pro's inaugural 2025 season. [15]

International career

O'Neal first played for the United States national team at the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Women's Nations League. [9]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Kumar, Aishwarya (December 3, 2021). "The extraordinary courage of NCAA volleyball star Asjia O'Neal". ESPN.com . Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  2. ↑ Riddle, Greg (July 31, 2017). "Texas pledge Asjia O'Neal, one of state's best volleyball players, won't play for Southlake Carroll as senior". The Dallas Morning News . Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Southlake Carroll's Asjia O'Neal commits to Texas volleyball". WFAA. April 28, 2016. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Why Asjia O'Neal is ready to be the face of the Columbus Fury, Pro Volleyball Federation". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
  5. ↑ Murphy, Mark (February 23, 2013). "Family struggle weighs on O'Neal" . Boston Herald . Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 Davis, Danny (November 18, 2022). "From emulating Dennis Rodman to using her voice, Texas' O'Neal continues to be herself". Austin American-Statesman . Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  7. ↑ Jones, Jeff (May 12, 2020). "Asjia O'Neal's journey back from multiple open-heart surgeries". KVUE . Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  8. ↑ "UT's Asjia O'Neal Honored with Honda Inspiration Award". Big 12 Conference. June 22, 2021. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  9. 1 2 Rossow, Adam (July 26, 2023). "'Comfortable and confident': How Texas volleyball star Asjia O'Neal acclimated herself to Team USA". Dallas: Spectrum News . Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  10. ↑ "2022 Women's DI All-Americans". American Volleyball Coaches Association. December 14, 2022. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Asjia O'Neal – Volleyball". University of Texas at Austin Athletics . Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  12. ↑ Jones, Thomas (December 18, 2023). "Asjia O'Neal closed out her Texas volleyball career perfectly: an ace for the NCAA title". Austin American-Statesman . Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  13. ↑ Jones, Thomas (December 16, 2023). "Texas' Asjia O'Neal will choose between Europe or America for her pro volleyball career". Austin American-Statesman . Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  14. ↑ "Texas volleyball star Asjia O'Neal signs with Columbus Fury in new domestic league". Austin American-Statesman. January 12, 2024. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  15. ↑ "Asjia O'Neal joins 5 other Longhorns on pro volleyball team". KVUE . July 1, 2024.
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