photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

KU senior Ryan White waits for an Arizona State serve during the Jayhawks' match against Arizona State on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025, at the Horejsi Family Volleyball Arena in Lawrence.

With a different roster and head coach for the 2025 season, Kansas volleyball experienced some sweeping changes to its program.

But with all that change came a player who would quickly become a fixture in the Kansas lineup: senior libero Ryan White.

Transferring from Oregon State, White arrived as the libero in the spring ready to get to work for Kansas. She was in the process of finishing her finals at Oregon State and starting her master’s degree at KU, a course load that added up to about 30 credit hours.

White said she came to KU with plenty of experience being adaptable.

“That’s what I wanted to bring: a consistency and emotional energy and emotional maturity,” she added. “And on top of that, communication.”

White’s decision to join new head coach Matt Ulmer’s team early in the spring demonstrated her commitment to the Jayhawks from an early stage. Her energy and work was already evident, and her teammates noticed: They voted her one of three team captains.

“I think she’s been a great glue for our team, especially that Ulmer brought in new people and we kind of had Coach (Ray Bechard’s) kids,” senior setter Katie Dalton said. “I think she was the glue to it, almost, and it’s been awesome seeing her grow in her fifth year.”

White is leading the team’s defense, earning Big 12 defensive player of the week honors in September and sporting a season-high 27 digs in a nonconference match against South Dakota. She averages 3.91 digs per set, and between her two programs, she’s played nearly every possible set in her four seasons of college volleyball.

Ulmer first became acquainted with White when the two were at rival schools in Oregon and Oregon State. The two knew each other through their matches and eventually the recruitment process, and Ulmer developed an understanding of White’s skill level. He would tell his players at Oregon not to hit the ball at her and has mentioned that their team hated playing against White because of her talent.

“Ryan is authentic,” Ulmer said. “Ryan is consistent. I mean, you’re going to get her best each and every day, and you can’t say that about a lot of people. People try, but she brings it legitimately every day.”

White’s road to volleyball wasn’t a Division I athlete’s typical journey. Both of her parents were college athletes at NAIA schools — her father played football and her mother played basketball — but she wanted to play a different sport than her parents. She made volleyball her own and started playing in middle school, continuing her growth into high school. But because of COVID, White’s junior season was cut short.

This didn’t stop her recruitment process, however. White consistently emailed and sent her film to programs around the country, as no coach could come watch her in person. After persistent efforts, Oregon State took a chance on her.

Now a veteran collegiate player, her skill as a libero has translated into all elements of her game. She directs the serve-receive and has made her goal to be creative with her position by finding ways to get in the other team’s head from across the net.

“I love taking the feeling away from the other attackers,” White said. “They think they have a kill, and then all of the sudden, I’m there. That’s my favorite part, being like, ‘Oh, they’re disappointed now.'”

Besides making it to the NCAA Volleyball Championship in Kansas City this year, White has charted several other goals for herself in the near future. She intends to play professionally before going on to be a coach, but has a clear aim of leaving a legacy at Kansas.

“I just want to leave the communication and the hard work,” White said. “I rely a lot on hard work and the more that you put in, the more you get out. So, I’m just hoping that’s the kind of thing — you know, the flying through the walls, flying into chairs, all of those things. That’s what I want to leave.”

Kansas volleyball will honor White on Saturday for senior day along with fellow players Katie Dalton, Brynn Kirsch, Molly McCarthy, Ellie Schneider and Rhian Swanson. First serve between the Jayhawks and UCF is set for 1 p.m.