BYU outside hitter Keoni Thiim has had elevating effect for No. 6 Cougars

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BYU’s Luke Benson and Keoni Thiim react to a point during a men’s volleyball match against the University of Southern California at the George Albert Smith Fieldhouse in Provo on Friday, March 7, 2025. BYU lost 3-2 in five sets. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News

BYU senior outside hitter Keoni Thiim had many connections to the university before transferring to the Provo school last offseason. After initially starting his career at Santa Barbara Community College, the well-traveled, high flyer found his niche at Hawaii before landing in BYU, where he’s performed among the nation’s elite for the Cougars.

“He’s made an impact, right from the moment that he got on campus,” BYU coach Shawn Olmstead said. “A rising tide … lifts all boats and I thought that’s what he was, and is, right from the moment he got here in the fall.”

Thiim is happy with the transition to Provo and the role he’s taken on for BYU, fitting in quickly with his new teammates.

“I am trusting my team and my team is trusting me back,” Thiim said after a win over St. Thomas Aquinas earlier this season. “We are pretty calm out there. I am super happy to be here. The environment here is insane. … They trust me to do what I do, so I have no regrets.”

Thiim has made it easy for his team to trust him, proving to be a big addition for the Cougars as one of the nation’s elite performers this season. He entered Tuesday with the ninth-most kills and tied for the fourth-most service aces in the NCAA.

“Keoni’s awesome,” BYU senior outside hitter Luke Benson said. “I love playing with him. I don’t think I love playing with anyone this much. He is so fun to play with and he brings great energy.”

When Thiim goes up for a kill, it would be easy to mistake his liftoff for flying — his breathtaking soaring often bringing fans at the Smith Fieldhouse to their feet. But it took a lot of work to achieve such a height.

“When I realized I was going to be the shortest outside … I was like ‘yeah, I better hit the squats.’” Thiim said in a “BYU Sports Nation” interview. “Maybe around senior year is when I started getting my hops up.”

At 6-feet-0, Thiim’s work has paid off, reaching a 45-inch vertical that more than makes up for any lack in height.

The senior star had a few different ties to BYU before ever stepping on the floor for the Cougars. He spent his sophomore year of high school down the road from the university, attending Timpview High, before finishing his prep education in Hawaii.

“I didn’t know him (when he was) in high school,” Olmstead said. “He (came) here at camp, living here that year.”

But the ties to the Provo school run much deeper than that; his grandfather, Mike Wilton, spent time on the Cougars coaching staff from 2009 to 2015.

“When he was coaching here, I would watch the games,” Thiim said in another “BYU Sports Nation” interview. “So I have been an audience member in the Smith (Fieldhouse).”

“He’s made an impact, right from the moment that he got on campus. A rising tide … lifts all boats and I thought that’s what he was, and is, right from the moment he got here in the fall.”

BYU coach BYU coach Shawn Olmstead on Keoni Thiim

Additionally, Wilton was roommates in college with the father of coach Olmstead and the Cougars’ head coach was roommates with Thiim’s uncle when they were teammates on the men’s volleyball team together over two decades ago. The ties between the two families makes the connection for Olmstead and Thiim very natural.

“Our families go way back,” Olmstead said. “I knew his mom really well … because we grew up together – our families. So there was familiarity.”

The familiarity has been good for Thiim, playing in his final year of collegiate volleyball.

“I was a part of some great teams at UH,” Thiim said in his “BYU Sports Nation” interview. “Things kind of changed and knowing (it was) my last year, I decided to kind of take a risk on my own capabilities. So that’s why I came here and (I) love coach Shawn. So it’s been great so far.”

Thiim and the No. 6 Cougars still have a lot to play for, with much of their MPSF schedule remaining. The school is currently position tied for fourth in the league standings.

BYU will play its third MPSF foe when it travels to No. 14 Grand Canyon this weekend for its first road contests in over a month. The matches are scheduled for Friday and Saturday evenings, with both beginning at 7 p.m.

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BYU’s Keoni Thiim serves the ball during a men’s volleyball match against the University of Southern California at the George Albert Smith Fieldhouse in Provo on Friday, March 7, 2025. BYU lost 3-2 in five sets. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News

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