Taylor Louis a different kind of Iowa volleyball player

IOWA CITY — Growing up in Evanston, Ill., Taylor Louis didn't know a thing about volleyball.

Her mother, Karen Brown, was a basketball player at Morgagn State and aunt Althea Brown played basketball at Iowa State.

But volleyball?

'It was honestly just something to do,' Louis said.

Louis never expected her career to take off like it did.

Now a junior at the University of Iowa, Louis is 'different than anyone that's ever competed in a Hawkeye uniform,' Coach Bond Shymansky said.

She has a team-high 179 kills heading into Friday's match against Wisconsin (7 p.m. at Carver-Hawkeye Arena) and also has 24 blocks.

During her freshman year at Niles North High School, Louis was just looking for something to occupy her time. She was introduced to a classmate's mother, who happened to play volleyball with Louis' aunt years earlier. That led Louis to joining the Wildcat Juniors volleyball club.

Her love of volleyball caught fire and hasn't extinguished since.

'I liked the sport, I saw myself getting good at it and I just kept going,' Louis said.

After a stellar high school career — she holds the school record with 998 career kills — Louis met Shymansky when he coached at Marquette. But two months after signing with Marquette, Shymansky took the job at Iowa.

'I felt guilty for leaving her stranded, but I wanted her to seek out the path that she was already on,' Shymansky said.

Louis became a first-team All-Big East pick, an honorable mention All-American and the fastest player in Marquette history to reach 1,000 kills. But something was missing and she decided to transfer.

When Shymansky caught wind, he was all over it.

Louis came for a visit at Iowa before the spring semester last year and was slated to go on four other visits. Shymansky was expecting a long recruitment.

'But she called me back the next day and just said 'I don't want to go anywhere else, I just want to play for you, I'm coming to Iowa,'' he said.

Now a junior, Louis has a cannon arm swing and is someone the Hawkeyes count on as a go-to hitter.

'Lou is the kind of player you're going to want to come watch,' Shymansky said.

The Hawkeyes host Minnesota on Saturday at 7 p.m.

l Comments: taylor.limas@thegazette.com