Jim Barnes has long had a knack for elevating programs to powerhouse status, and for the fourth-year head coach of Iowa volleyball, the Hawkeyes carry that same potential.
Iowa’s 2023-24 campaign, Barnes’ second with the team, saw the Hawkeyes finish 0-20 in Big Ten contests, but this past season saw Iowa improve to four conference wins, besting Rutgers twice and knocking off Maryland and Indiana along the way.
Barnes, whose past coaching tenures include a Sweet 16 run with Baylor, noted the great potential of last season’s roster and the challenges that came with early injuries, like third-year setter Claire Ammeraal.
“I believe last year we had the team to create a winning record had we not run into some injuries early,” Barnes said in an interview with The Daily Iowan. “I think we had the potential to have a winning season and really get going, but didn’t overcome some of those challenges.”
The McNeese State alum also noted the high quality of both teams from this current and the previous season.
“We had the team to do it, and now we’ve doubled that,” Barnes said. “We’ve doubled the talent, we’ve doubled the depth, and we have more than enough on our roster to create a really strong, winning season.”
A key part of any good program is its setters, which the Hawkeyes maximized last season.
Ammeraal tallied 378 assists, averaging 6.41 assists per set, despite an injury that confined the Central Michigan transfer to only 18 matches on the season.
When Ammeraal was sidelined, first-year Jenna Meitzler stepped up to close the gap, posting 709 assists, 143 digs, 55 blocks, and 37 kills.
Ammeraal credits the team’s focus as a key part of winning games last season, despite both individual and program obstacles.
“It seemed like they were a lot more driven,” Ammeraal said in an interview. “They had a lot more common goals, which I really liked. We lost a couple of people from last season, but I think now, we’re even more focused on one thing. We all want the same things.”
The Madison, Wisconsin, native also praised Barnes’ leadership as a coach who keeps the team moving in the same direction.
“He has a positive attitude that brings everybody up,” Ammeraal said. “With his recruiting process, especially, he’s looking for players with good culture who are going to bring good vibes. That’s huge because having one bad attitude on the team can bring a couple other people down with it, and then you have a divide on your team. That’s what leads to losing records, losing games, having a bad time.”
In addition to retaining key players from last season like Ammeraal, who eclipsed 2,000 career assists in just the second game of the season, the Hawkeyes added some new talent to the program this season, such as fourth-year Milana Moisio, a transfer libero from Miami who appeared in two matches of last season’s NCAA tournament.
Moisio described Barnes and his program as placing a major emphasis on culture, which was a key factor in her move to Iowa City.
“My first phone call with him was very detailed,” Moisio said in an interview. “It felt very wholesome. Their values and the culture that they were building, that they were describing, really fit with what I wanted.”
The Waukegan, Illinois native also noted the contributions she hopes to bring to Iowa, citing a positive attitude and good team morale.
“I really want to focus on having my teammates lean on me, especially when times get challenging,” Moisio said. “It’s so easy to play [well] when things are smooth and everyone’s on the same page, but when things are [chaotic], I really want my teammates to know that they can lean on me.”
Barnes ultimately emphasized the positive attitude this year’s team continues to carry into games, praising their resilience as well as both new and returning talent.
“Things have to go your way, you’ve got to stay healthy, but we’re really optimistic about what we can do this year,” Barnes said. “We’ve got some players that can really play and have some good experiences. [We’re] expecting big things.”