Back-to-back Big 12 championships helped put Sun Devil Volleyball on the map, but the relationships players build with each other — and with head coach JJ Van Niel — are the program’s lasting legacy.
Building a culture beyond volleyball
When he arrived in Tempe before the 2023 season, Van Niel inherited a roster of just nine players coming off a 13-19 season.
Teaching volleyball, he said, wasn’t the difficult part. In his first season at ASU, the Sun Devils finished 28-7.
The hard part was building the right culture.
Rather than focusing only on practices and game plans, Van Niel intentionally invests in relationships. He does this with team retreats, coffee outings, lunches, dinners and card games. There’s just one rule: No volleyball talk.
“If your only relationships are on the court, they’re not going to be good ones,” Van Niel said. “Players have to know you care about them off the court.”
Current middle blocker Zoey Burgess said players notice this sentiment immediately.
For Ung, that connection starts with Van Niel, someone who is much more than a coach.
"Whenever I’m struggling in any aspect of life, the first person I always call is literally JJ,” Ung said. “He’s like another dad for me. If I find myself struggling with something — volleyball, life, anything — I’ll just call JJ, and he’ll give me great advice.”
Former setter Shannon Shields, who was a graduate student during Van Niel’s first year, also returns every summer.
"I feel like coming back every year to help out with camps is kind of my way to say thank you,” she said.
After graduation, Shields planned to attend medical school, but Van Niel encouraged her to play professionally first. She has since played pro in Portugal, Switzerland, Atlanta and will play in Las Vegas in 2026.
“JJ really prepared me to take chances,” Shields said. “I learned the most important thing is to have fun and enjoy the process, because when can I go overseas and play the game that I love? Not often. I had to take the risk and do it.”
Giving back to the next generation
On top of strong relationships within the team, Van Niel also encourages strong relationships between the team and the community.
"I want a culture that’s connected to the community, and the players know that,” he said. “Our players need to understand how lucky they are and fortunate they are that they have all this, and the best way to do that is to give back to the community that is supporting them,” Van Niel said.
For Bailey Miller, another alum now playing professionally, returning is about continuing what previous players created for her and connecting with the local community.
"It’s always been part of our goal as a team to inspire the younger girls,” Miller said. “We were all there before. I would go to camps, and I was so enamored by all the girls. Now being in this position is such a privilege. It’s so cool to see that the girls are just so excited to play with you, so excited to talk to you, and I’m just glad I get to be a part of it.”
