SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State volleyball team bolstered its 2024 newcomer class after head coach Brent Hilliard announced the addition of transfer Shea Rubright, who joined the Aztec program over the semester break.
A 6-3 middle blocker, Rubright brings a wealth of experience with her to The Mesa after competing for nationally ranked programs at Minnesota (2019-21) and Washington State (2022-23). She will have one year of eligibility remaining at SDSU.
"We are excited to welcome Shea to the Aztec family," Hilliard said. "After only spending a short time with her, we know she will be an amazing fit for our team. With her experience in the Big Ten and Pac-12, it will be nice to have someone with Shea's level of play help lead this team.
"Shea is an elite blocker who moves extremely well laterally. Combine this with the ability to score both in front and behind the setter, and we have someone who will be able to contribute at a high level in the Mountain West. We can't wait to see Shea on the court this spring."
In three years at Minnesota, Rubright appeared in 45 matches, posting 78 kills (0.61/set) and 107 blocks (0.84/set) while hitting .290 across 128 sets. She enjoyed her finest season as a junior in the fall of 2021 when she set collegiate highs in matches played (19), kills (39) and hitting percentage (.312) while contributing 45 blocks.
As a freshman in 2019, Rubright saw action in 13 matches, including the Golden Gophers' encounter vs. No. 3 Stanford in the national semifinals. She later recorded a career-high 51 blocks in the spring of 2021.
In 2022, Rubright transferred to Washington State, where she compiled 21 kills (0.91/set) and 18 blocks (0.78) across 11 matches in parts of two seasons.
A heavily decorated prep star at West Valley High School in Yakima, Washington, Rubright was a two-time state Gatorade Player of the Year and twice earned Columbia Basin/Big Nine Conference Player of the Year honors before receiving first-team Under Armour All-America recognition.
As a senior, Rubright led her Rams squad to the Washington 4A state championship, posting 340 kills (4.3/set), a .505 hitting percentage, 78 blocks (1.0/set) and 47 aces (0.6/set), according to MaxPreps. She was listed as the No. 12 recruit nationally by PrepVolleyball.com and was invited to play in the Under Armour All-America match in conjunction with the NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship.
A multi-sport athlete, Rubright also won two letters in tennis as a prep and one in basketball.
In addition to her on-court performances, Rubright has excelled in the classroom, twice earning a spot on the Big Ten Academic Honor Roll at Minnesota (2020 and 2021) while collecting the Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award (2021).
Rubright received her bachelor's degree in political science from Washington State and will pursue a master's degree in education counseling at SDSU.