Born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, Kristen first began playing beach volleyball during her sophomore year in high school, but her success in sports spanned much further than just on the sand. Kristen led Mount Carmel Academy to three indoor volleyball state championships as well as two basketball championships. Her high school career concluded her senior year with her being named Louisiana Gatorade Player of the Year as well as New Orleans Sports Amateur Athlete of the Year.
All the while, it was beach volleyball that progressively set in as her number-one love as she competed in various tournaments throughout her high school years. She quickly committed to LSU Beach Volleyball during her junior year without talking to any other programs, as it had always been her dream to compete as a Tiger. Kristen stuck to her winning ways at the collegiate level, as she amassed the most career wins in LSU history, became the winningest player in collegiate beach volleyball history, and ensured her team appeared in the NCAA championship tournament every year of her tenure. Kristen, along with her teammate Claire Coppola, also became a two-time USAV pair’s champion.
Kristen graduated in December 2020 but opted to return for one more semester of eligibility due to COVID-19 exceptions. Her winning ways continued but it was now with Taryn Kloth alongside her. The two had an astonishing season as LSU’s Court 1 pair. They garnered a historical 36-0 record and helped lead the Sandy Tigs to a 4th-place finish in the NCAA tournament.
Kristen is pound for pound one of the best players in the world and proven to compete on the world’s stage with anyone. Her continued development defensively tantalizes the opponents and captivates the audience. Their growth and team chemistry has propelled TKN into the top seed representing USA Volleyball at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Kristen Nuss (born December 16, 1997) is an American beach volleyball player, currently competing in the FIVB World Tour/Pro Beach Tour. She competed at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris with Taryn Kloth.
Nuss was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana to Audrey and George. She is the youngest of four children, with older brothers Pete, Jeffrey, and Jordan.
Nuss was a multi-sport athlete throughout high school, leading Mount Carmel Academy to three indoor volleyball and two basketball state titles, though beach volleyball was the sport she enjoyed most. Nuss was an LHSAA Division I MVP and Gatorade Player of the Year candidate for indoor volleyball.
Nuss attended Louisiana State University starting in 2017 and quickly found success on the sand with fellow freshman Claire Coppola. The pair accumulated nine wins over NCAA-ranked teams, including seven against top-10-ranked teams. At one point during their freshman season, they won 20 of 21 matches, finishing with a 27-7 record and being named to Volleyballmag.com’s All-America team. The pair’s success grew in the following seasons, compiling records of 31-8 and 33-4 over the following two seasons, winning the USA Volleyball Collegiate Beach Championship, CCSA Pair of the Year, AVCA All-America honors in back-to-back years. They were the first pair to win consecutive CCSA Pair of the Year awards. Their junior season also saw them top the Tigers’ individual wins list at 81. Their 2020 season saw them reach the 100-win mark, becoming the third pair to do so behind USC’s Sara Hughes and Kelly Cheng and UCLA’s Megan and Nicole McNamara.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Nuss began training with Taryn Kloth, an indoor volleyball player for Creighton who had transferred to LSU. Despite having never played beach volleyball before, the pair went on to finish the 2021 season with a 36-0 record, the second-ever team to complete an undefeated season and the NCAA title.
Nuss graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology, finishing her college career as one of the most decorated NCAA beach volleyball players ever with 136 total victories, three CCSA Pair of the Year and AVCA All-American awards, two USA Volleyball Collegiate Beach Championships, and Volleyballmag.com Player of the Year.
Nuss and Kloth turned professional upon graduating in 2021, to qualify for the Olympics in Paris but opting to keep their base in New Orleans instead of moving to Southern California. They initially struggled to qualify for international tournaments but eventually broke through with Gold in the 2022 BPT Coolangatta Futures. Shortly thereafter, the pair beat the Tokyo Silver Medalists, Australians Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy, en route to the Gold at the 2022 BPT Kusadasi Challenge (21-12, 17-21, 17-15).
The pair started 2023 with wins in two of their first four World Tour tournaments and followed it up with three medals in five tournaments during the European leg of the tour schedule. In the World Championships, the pair reached the semifinals, losing in three sets to their American counterparts Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes. They rematched with the Australian Olympic silver medalists Mariafe and Clancy to win bronze (15-21, 21-19, 15-8) at the World Championships. Nuss and Klothe then cruised to win Gold at the World Tour Finals, not dropping a single set, to reach the No. 2 FIVB ranking and qualify for the Olympics in Paris.
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