When people hear the name Merritt Beason, they may think “Nebraska volleyball player, former All-American,” but her path to the Husker volleyball team almost didn’t happen.
The former Husker opposite hitter grew up as a gymnast in Alabama before playing volleyball, with plans to try out for the cheer team in high school. However, one conversation with her father changed everything.
“I kind of came to a crossroads where I didn’t know if I was going to try out for cheer or volleyball,” Beason told Hurrdat Sports. “My dad, on my back porch, we were kind of talking through it, and I’ll never forget, he said, ‘Do you want to be cheered for, or do you want to cheer for other people?’ I said, ‘OK, there’s my answer.’”
Beason spent two years at Nebraska, earning All-America honors in 2023 before going pro in 2024.
The Atlanta Vibe drafted Beason with the first overall pick in the first round of the 2024 Major League Volleyball draft. She spent one season there before becoming a free agent and ultimately signing with the Omaha Supernovas on Aug. 7, 2025.
“Nebraska has truly become like my second home, and so the minute that I stepped foot back in the state, I just felt that, and felt all the love from everyone around us,” Beason said. “But I’m just super excited. Everybody says there’s truly no place like Nebraska, and just playing in a state that celebrates volleyball so much is something that I wanted to be a part of again. I’m super excited for our season to get going.”
While with the Huskers, Beason played for former Nebraska head coach John Cook, who now serves as co-owner and general manager of the Supernovas. The two are now reunited in Omaha.
“It was like I was in the portal again getting recruited by him again,” Beason said. “That was obviously not something that I thought that I would be having those kinds of conversations with him anymore. So it was really special, and I think, obviously, he’s been a big part of getting my love for the game back, and just growing in the sport itself. For me, he’s been a huge part of that, so to have him kind of along this journey with me as well has been really cool.”
The 6-foot-4 pin hitter spent two seasons at Florida before entering her name into the transfer portal, stepping into the unknown in 2023.
“I didn’t really care where I ended up,” Beason said. “Honestly, it was kind of like, I could be walking into another program that wasn’t a great fit for me. I was kind of in the mind frame of like, ‘OK, I’ll give it another shot, and if it’s the same kind of deal I’ll quit.’ I didn’t know where I was going to end up. I didn’t necessarily have the best thoughts about myself or my game at that point in time, so I didn’t know if I’d be at the JUCO down the road of my home town or where I was going to end up.”
That unknown led her to Nebraska. In her two seasons with the program, the Gardendale, Alabama, native recorded 3.27 kills per set on .258 hitting while adding 41 aces for the Huskers.
“From the moment that I stepped on campus for my visit, I knew that this was going to be home for me,” Beason said. “I could go on and on for hours just about how special that program was for me specifically, but I truly did fall back in love with volleyball. I had the best teammates that I could have asked for, truly loved every single one of them and just getting to know them, and then obviously staff was a big one for me.”
Named a two-time team captain at Nebraska, Beason helped guide the Huskers to two Final Four appearances while regaining her love for the sport.
“I think just the group of girls that we had made that time so special, the relationships that we built and the friendships, the lifelong friendships that I’ll have away from it,” Beason reflected. “We had so many cool experiences, like, obviously, the stadium match, and going to two Final Fours, and just breaking so many records left and right. That’s such a special time in Nebraska volleyball history. I’m just so honored to have been a small part of it.”
Beason will continue to prepare for her first game with the Supernovas, with hopes of growing throughout the year.
“I think a thing for me personally is just to continue getting 1% better every single day,” Beason said. “I think (head coach) Luka (Slabe) does a great job of kind of fostering that environment as well, of accepting the mistakes and pushing us to make the mistakes so that we can get better. So it’s kind of been a focus of mine in the preseason is not being scared of those mistakes, and just truly failing first so that we can get better. That’s kind of been a focus of mine this off season.”
The Supernovas open the 2026 season by welcoming the San Diego Mojo to CHI Health Center Omaha on Thursday. First serve is set for 7 p.m. CT, streaming on YouTube, Nebraska Public Media and the Supernovas Radio Network.
