Lauren Mascardo
Halle Jameson (4) finishes a play by hitting the ball over the net and past East Texas A&M University's defense in its match against Colorado State University Sept. 11. CSU won the match 3-1.
Halle Jameson is taking the Colorado State volleyball world by storm, but it wasn’t always that way.
Of the first-year class of hitters, Sofia Zabjek was the one leading the Rams at the beginning of the season, creating a name for herself among the starters. Then, when Zabjek became injured and the team needed someone to step up, Jameson answered.
In Jameson’s first match, head coach Emily Kohan was wary of her ability and, instead of pushing her to be aggressive, told her, “You have to tip every ball.”
But Kohan soon realized her mistake.
“She’s just caught fire. She’s started to have a lot of range and get a lot of confidence, which I think makes any hitter dangerous — that she knows she can be the best one on the court. She’s really driven to carry the team. She’s selfless and really wants the team’s success to be the first thing that happens, even beyond her own.” –Emily Kohan, CSU volleyball head coach
“After the match was over, I apologized to her,” Kohan said. “I was like, ‘Hey, you (have) got to swing, and you’re only a freshman, and you’re only going to get better as you learn to swing.’ And man, look at her go when she learned how to swing.”
For Jameson, as it was her first game hitting, it was an opportunity to get more comfortable with being aggressive.
“I was just trying to learn from that experience, and I had to tip a few balls in that one to kind of grow from it,” Jameson said. “But I think it pushed me to really just kind of come out and be aggressive and show that I can swing and can get a lot of kills.”
And after the first few matches of the season, Jameson asserted herself among the best of the team. Behind sophomore Maria Brun and junior Eve Wilson, Jameson is close to leading the team in kills with 197, averaging 2.66 per set.
Jameson even takes advantage of her opponent’s defense with her aggressive line-drive shots. She is so successful in this area that the team named it the “Halle Shot.”
“She’s so good at hitting over her shoulder like that,” Kohan said. “And she’s learning how to hit different shots every week in practice, and she’s eager to get better, and she’s just a joy to coach.”
And as she’s learned different shots, her kills have grown to span beyond just the front row, resulting in her becoming the main back-row attacker for the team — something CSU was lacking after Malaya Jones transferred out following the 2024 season.
When the Rams went on the road to compete against New Mexico and Grand Canyon in early October, Jameson first started to test out her back-row hitting abilities, and something clicked.
“You watch the really high-level teams have a back-row attacker that’s really weaponized,” Kohan said. “(We) have these really young back row attackers, (and) we’re starting to push that a little more in our practice gym. And you watched it in the game … that Halle started out of the back row, and it looked really nice.”
But kills aren’t the only thing Jameson is producing in the back row.
Although Kohan was wary about Jameson’s attacking at first, passing was a different story. Kohan initially utilized her as a defensive specialist, as Jameson was a steady passer for the team. Then and now she consistently beats the ball to the ground, highlighting her scrappiness, and has also never been one to shy away from chasing balls into the stands.
“She is one of the best passers in the conference right now,” Kohan said. “As a true freshman, (she) plays great defense, and then she just (has) a lot of range.”
Despite excelling on all areas of the court, Jameson said she still sees room for growth and continuously works to improve her craft while making an impact on her team.
“I know that I am young, but (I’m) just not letting it be a big factor,” Jameson said. “I don’t want it to be an excuse ever. Like, if I’m messing up, (to not be) like, ‘Well, I’m just a freshman.’ I just think I want to do the best I can all the time, no matter what my age is.”
For the CSU volleyball program, everyone loses together, but everyone wins together, too. And that starts from building energy and momentum, which can often be seen from the sideline, whether it’s the team’s pre-planned cheers or lively traditions.
For Jameson, she never leaves the court. She has to keep her mind as sharp as her hits, maintaining her strong mentality no matter what numbers appear on the scoreboard.
“She’s been in big moments with big teams and had to be the go-to player on those teams,” Kohan said. “I think her innate confidence from being in the gym for so long and being one of the go-to players on every team she’s been on is a big part of her confidence and success.”
Although this is Jameson’s first year on the Division 1 playing level, this is far from her first experience playing high-level volleyball. Growing up in one of the most competitive — as Kohan put it, “hotspot” — states for volleyball, the Texas native quickly learned how to elevate herself as a player.
In July 2024, Jameson represented the North Texas Region in the USA Volleyball All-Star Championships. Her experience came from being a team captain for both her school in Rockwall and her club team, Excel Volleyball Club — a team that frequently qualified for Nationals.
“I think high school’s similar to college because you go to school together, you’re with each other all the time (and) you practice every day,” Jameson said. “So I feel like it was a good learning experience for this, like being with your teammates all the time and building a good team atmosphere.”
Jameson said Kekua Richards and Wilson have been the players helping her to assimilate to the program the most. And as Jameson progresses in skill, she is showing glimpses of what Brun did in her early years, as she was the only starting true freshman in the 2024 season.
The two are among the highest ranked category leaders for both kills and digs, along with being some of the strongest players for the Rams.
“She’s been improving so much from Northern Colorado,” Brun said. “Every time she’s going through all the games she’s been playing (in), she’s been growing so much. You can see all the stats. She’s putting all her effort; she’s giving to her teammates, so yeah, she’s doing good.”
Although Jameson isn’t letting her age define her, she still has multiple years to continue growing and potentially become a household name with the Rams. With extra training, she could look like a whole new player by her senior year.
But for now? Jameson’s match found its flame, and she’s working on feeding it kindling and oxygen to become an unstoppable force.
“She’s just caught fire,” Kohan said. “She’s started to have a lot of range and get a lot of confidence, which I think makes any hitter dangerous — that she knows she can be the best one on the court. She’s really driven to carry the team. She’s selfless and really wants the team’s success to be the first thing that happens, even beyond her own.”
Reach Sophie Webb at sports@collegian.com or on social media @sophgwebb.
Interested in more sports content? Sign up for Ram Report here for weekly CSU sports updates!