Asia Thigpen is driven to succeed, whether on the volleyball court, or in the classroom. Fueled by last season’s appearance in the national championship game, as well as her own experience winning the NCAA Elite Scholar-Athlete Award (given to the sophomore student athlete or above from the four remaining teams who has the highest grade point average) she’s eager to make a return trip in 2026.

But Asia has a lot going on off the court, too. She’s a Human Health Sciences major on the pre-med track and she sports a 3.953 GPA. This is an especially exciting time for UK volleyball — there’s an appearance at Wrigley Field coming up, as well as one of the nation's toughest schedules. Come with us, as we Lead the Way with Asia Thigpen, on this episode of The Way Podcast.