University of Iowa Athletics
Molly Kelly - Volleyball - University of Iowa Athletics

#1 Molly Kelly

Position DS
Height 5-4
Class Sr.
Hometown West Liberty, Iowa
High School West Liberty

Hawk Item

  • Father, Mitchell, wrestled for Iowa from 1982-87
  • Cousin, Nicholas Baer, played basketball for Iowa from 2014-19
  • One of seven Hawkeyes to appear in every match (33) in 2015

2018 as a senior

  • Appeared in 31 matches with 31 starts
  • Iowa’s Big Ten sportsmanship recipient
  • Set single-season school record with 619 digs
  • Holds school record for digs in a three-set match (27)
  • Recorded career-high in digs back-to-back games against SMU (20) and Lipscomb (24)
  • Tied a career-high seven assists at Washington on Aug. 31
  • Tallied 20 digs and four assists against Colorado on Sept. 1
  • Notched three assists, two aces, and 15 digs in a win over South Dakota State on Sept. 8
  • Tied a career-high with 24 digs in win over Drake on Sept. 8
  • Named to Cyclone Classic All-Tournament team
  • Tallied 23 digs and four assists in a win over Wyoming
  • Chipped in 22 assists in victory over Iowa State
  • Set a new career-high with 29 digs in loss vs No. 18 Michigan on Sept. 23
  • Recorded 22 digs in win over No. 6 Wisconsin on Oct. 6
  • Recorded 25 digs vs. Rutgers on Nov.2
  • Recorded 22 digs against No. 6 Nebraska
  • Reached 1,000 digs against No.6 Nebraska on November 7
  • Registered 15 digs against Michigan State
  • Tallied 23 digs against Indiana
  • Recorded 26 digs vs. No. 12 Purdue
  • Set a new career-high of 34 digs vs. Maryland
  • Notched 20 digs vs. Ohio State

2017 as a Junior

  • Appeared in 32 matches
  • Tallied 45 assists, 15 aces, and 189 digs overall
  • Had 105 digs, 29 assists, and five aces in Big Ten play
  • Recorded 13 digs at Maryland on Nov. 17
  • Had nine digs and four assists against No. 22 Purdue on Nov. 5
  • Tallied 10 digs and two aces at No. 10 Michigan State on Oct. 28
  • Had a service ace against Northwestern on Oct. 21
  • Recorded 13 digs against Indiana on Oct. 11
  • Registered 11 digs against No. 22 Michigan on Oct. 4
  • Had five digs against No. 3 Minnesota on Sept. 30
  • Recorded three assists against Princeton on Sept. 16
  • Had a season-high three aces and 11 digs against NIU on Sept. 9
  • Recorded a career-best 14 digs and an ace against Coastal Carolina on Sept. 2
  • Had second career kill at Long Beach State on Aug. 26
  • Racked up a season-high 11 digs at Long Beach State on Aug. 26

2016 as a Sophomore

  • Appeared in all 32 matches and had a team-high 26 service aces
  • Chipped in 140 digs and 30 assists
  • Collected 92 digs, 18 assists and 17 service aces in league play
  • Tallied three service aces against No. 14 Michigan State on Nov. 26
  • Registered six digs against the Spartans
  • Had five digs at Rutgers on Nov. 4
  • Tied a career-high four aces against No. 24 Illinois on Oct. 29
  • Chipped in eight digs against Northwestern on Oct. 28
  • Had two service aces against No. 4 Wisconsin
  • Collected seven digs at Maryland on Oct. 14
  • Registered six digs in Iowa’s upset victory over No. 17 Purdue
  • Amassed nine digs in Iowa’s win at Northwestern
  • Registered seven digs against Michigan on Sept. 24
  • Recorded seven digs in Iowa’s 3-0 win over NDSU
  • Recorded a career-high four aces in Iowa’s 4-1 win vs. Loyola-Chicago on Aug. 27
  • Registered seven digs and four assists against Oakland on Sept. 3

2015 as a Freshman

  • Appeared in all 33 matches
  • Tallied 177 digs and averaged 1.55 digs per set
  • Recorded 22 service aces for a 0.19 service aces per set average — the sixth-best average among collegiate freshmen and second best on the team
  • Reached double digits in digs three times
  • Recorded nine digs in Iowa’s 3-2 win over Pacific on Aug. 29
  • Recorded a career-high three aces in back-to-back games against Pacific and Northern Illinois
  • Recorded eight digs against American on Sept. 6
  • Registered nine digs and set a new career-high with three assists against Milwaukee on Sept. 11
  • Recorded nine digs against Coastal Carolina on Sept. 18
  • Posted a career-high 11 digs against No. 24 Michigan on Oct. 7
  • Recorded nine digs against Michigan State on Oct. 10
  • Matched her career high with three service against No. 16 Wisconsin on Oct. 23
  • Recorded a career-high and team-leading 12 digs at Indiana on Nov. 4
  • Recorded six digs against Purdue on Nov. 7
  • Registered eight digs against Ohio State on Nov. 18
  • Tallied seven digs against Northwestern on Nov. 21
  • Recorded eight digs and a career-high five assists against Maryland on Nov. 25

High School

  • Four-year all-conference honoree
  • All-region selection as a junior and senior
  • Garnered first team all-state honors as a senior and honorable mention all-state honors as a junior
  • Holds four West Liberty school records: digs, serving efficiency, digs in a single match, and digs per set
  • Helped West Liberty qualify for state in 2011 and earn a conference tournament championships in 2011 and 2012
  • Named Player of the Year by the Muscatine Journal and Quad City Times as a senior
  • Selected to play on the Iowa Senior All-Star Team
  • Led Iowa 3A in digs per set in 2013 and total digs in 2014
  • Played club for the Iowa Rockets
  • Helped the team to a USA National Championship in Dallas, Texas, in 2013 with current Hawkeye Alyssa Klostermann, a High Performance International Championship in 2012, and a third place finish at Nationals in Atlanta in 2011
  • Four-year 4.0+ Honor Roll student and a three-year National Honor Society member
  • Student Council member, Class President, and involved in the Dual Language Spanish Program

Personal

  • Born February 18, 1997
  • Daughter of Mitchell and Janine Kelly
  • Has three siblings: Shannon, Marissa, and Joe