Junior middle hitter Anna Davis has taken on a unique leadership role off the court this season for the Iowa volleyball team.

Davis, one of four team captains voted by her teammates, tore her left ACL on Feb. 22. She had surgery to repair the tear and some other minor issues in the knee on March 15.

At almost seven months post-op, Davis is recovering better than her doctors expected. She is running and jumping again and focusing on rebuilding her balance and strength.

“She’s amazed the doctors, and she’s always amazed her teammates at how hard she works,” head coach Jim Barnes said.

Davis attended Valor Christian High School in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, where she helped lead the Eagles to their first state championship in Class 5A. She was selected as one of the top 50 senior players in the nation, according to PrepVolleyball.com, and named the South Metro Co-Volleyball Player of the Year.

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Davis committed to play volleyball at Tulane out of high school, where she met Barnes.

Davis played in 76 sets in her freshman season with the Green Wave, tallying 159 kills, 19 digs, and 40 blocks. Davis started 32 matches in her sophomore season, racking up 232 kills, 63 digs, 92 blocks, and 25 service aces.

Davis is one of two transfers from Tulane who followed Barnes to Iowa ahead of the 2022 season along with sophomore outside hitter Michelle Urquhart.

Davis and Urquhart became close while playing together for one season at Tulane, and navigating through this team change together has brought them even closer.  Urquhart said Davis has remained a vocal leader in practice and on the sidelines.

“I know [the injury] has been hard for her, but she’s one of the strongest people I know,” Urquhart said. “She wants all of us to be better regardless if she’s out on the court or not. She knows how to bring the fire out of everybody.”

While Davis would much rather be an active player on the court, she embraced her role this season.

“I’m not necessarily in the role I wanted to be in this season, but I still have a role on this team,” Davis said. “And I think I realized with this injury that I have a unique ability to take care of my teammates and serve them in a different way because I’m not on the court with them. I can take care of what they need off the court, whether that’s physically or emotionally.”

Iowa is in the midst of rebuilding its program under Barnes after going more than two decades without a winning conference record. The Hawkeyes have battled this season against several nationally-ranked opponents, indicating improvements on both sides of the ball. While Davis is out for the 2022 season, Barnes is looking forward to adding her to the rotation next season.

“I can’t wait to get her completely healthy and back on the floor,” Barnes said.