DAYTON – University of Dayton volleyball head coach Tim Horsmon has announced that Alia Williams will be joining the team for the fall 2024 season. A May 2024 graduate of LSU, Williams will use her final year of eligibility with the Flyers.

"Alia is an accomplished player who brings a great deal of experience to us for her fifth and final season," Horsmon said about Williams. "She is quick off the floor and can score in front of and behind the setter, making her a very versatile middle in our system.

"What we love the most is Alia's personality and energy. I think she's exactly what we needed in terms of maturity and a positivity that will make it fun to compete around her. She just mentioned she wants to make our gym better and have a chance to play at the highest level. To compete for championships and put us in another nationally competitive situation this year."

A native of Houston, Texas, Williams was a four-year member of the LSU volleyball team, seeing action in 51 matches as a Tiger. During the 2022 season, the middle blocker started all 30 matches and appeared in all 119 sets while averaging 0.83 blocks/set (99 total) and collecting 164 kills (1.38/set) behind a .259 hitting percentage. She completed her career at LSU with a total of 197 kills, 126 blocks, 12 aces, 28 assists and 68 digs.

"Being in the transfer portal can bring up a mix of emotions, but choosing to attend University of Dayton was one of the easiest decisions I've ever made," reflected Williams. "I knew my decision from a gut feeling I got while on my visit to UD. The overall atmosphere was so welcoming and felt like a place I could call home. The cherry on top was when the staff played the team's hype video for me on the last day of my visit. I had loved my visit thus far but was waiting for a final sign or symbol to let me know I was making the right decision. The second the video started playing, my jaw dropped, and I knew I was right where I was supposed to be. The song behind the video was "Rise" by Katy Perry, the same song my 2018 state championship team would visualize to before every game the year we won the title. In that moment, I had no doubt that UD was something I needed to be a part of."

Williams helped lead Kingwood Park High School to a 2018 Texas State Championship title and earned All-State, All-Area, All-Conference, All-District and All-Academic honors throughout her high school career. She was selected to the AVCA Under Armour All-America squad and helped Houston Juniors Volleyball Club to a third-place finish in the 2017 Tour of Texas and a second-place finish in the 2017 Lone Star Classic.