Kayla Lund

Classroom

Lund’s consistent success on the court extends into the classroom, where she has earned an undergraduate degree in communication and psychology from the University of Pittsburgh while maintaining a 3.5 GPA. She is continuing her education by pursuing a graduate degree in applied developmental psychology.

Over the last four years, she earned three selections to the All-ACC Volleyball Academic Team and is a three-time member of the ACC Honor Roll. With Lund on the squad, Pitt has earned four consecutive Team Academic Awards from the AVCA – the longest streak in program history (2018-21).

Character

A rare three-time captain, Lund has led by example on and off the court for the Panthers.

Through her leadership she has helped guide one of the top volleyball programs in the nation through challenging times, including the pandemic and social unrest around the country.

In addition to these obstacles in her volleyball life, Lund has also faced immense challenges at home. Over the summer months of 2021, Lund’s younger brother, Michael, started experiencing some health concerns. He was subsequently diagnosed with a brain tumor. Following major surgery, Lund was able to travel home to California to spend time with Michael. Throughout his recovery and ongoing treatment, Lund and her family have received support from across the country, including cards and letters from opposing teams and student-athletes.

It takes exceptional strength and courage to lead a top volleyball program to unprecedented success while enduring uncertainty, which illustrates how Lund exemplifies remarkable character.

Community

During her time as a student-athlete, Lund has extended her efforts into the community. She has been a member of Panther Fellowship, a Coalition for Christian Outreach ministry, since her freshman year and has served in a leadership role in the group for the past three years. In 2019, she traveled with Panther Fellowship on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic, where she helped serve underprivileged communities.

In addition to the trying times of the pandemic, the world suffered multiple injustices with the murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor. In step with the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, many student-athletes chose to use their platforms to help bring awareness to the fight for social justice. Looking to contribute to the cause in any way possible, Lund raised money by designing a clothing line from which all proceeds were donated to victims’ GoFundMe pages.

Competition

Lund’s competitive success is unprecedented. She has made history not only at the institutional level, but at the conference level as well, becoming the ACC’s first two-time Volleyball Player of the Year (2019, 2020). She is the first Pitt player ever to earn two selections to an AVCA All-America team, landing on the second team in 2019 and 2020.

Entering her extra year of eligibility, Lund has already earned the University of Pittsburgh’s highest honor for a student-athlete by receiving the Panther Award, presented to the male and female senior student-athlete who has promoted Pitt Athletics through his or her outstanding athletic achievement. Her name will be forever recognized on the Varsity Walk on Pitt’s Oakland campus.

Since Lund’s arrival in Oakland, Pitt has won three ACC Championships, with the Panthers clinching bids to the NCAA Tournament each year. This past season, Pitt reached its pinnacle of postseason play, earning a spot in the NCAA Elite Eight for the first time after defeating No. 3 seed Minnesota in Omaha.

As part of one of Pitt’s top recruiting classes in history, Lund made an immediate impact on the Panthers’ rise in national prominence over the last four years. She is one of just seven student-athletes in program history to earn more than 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in a career. She ranks in the program’s top 10 for career kills (sixth, 1,355), digs (ninth, 1,124), service aces (sixth, 133) and attacks (seventh, 3,470). Her name will be featured in the Panthers’ record book long after her career ends at Pitt.