Sioux Falls O'Gorman alum Taryn Kloth picking up big wins in professional beach volleyball

Taryn Kloth had no idea any of this would happen. When the Sioux Falls O'Gorman alum and her LSU beach volleyball partner, Kristen Nuss, entered international competition after a successful rookie season in AVP together, they thought they might have to separate for a while.

In international beach volleyball tours, teams are admitted to tournaments on the basis of points that are earned from international competition. Both Kloth and Nuss, having not yet competed internationally, had none.

So, they each latched onto a different partner with the point totals to allow them to qualify for the first Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Futures event in Australia. But COVID-19 protocols forced Kloth's partner to drop out. She needed a partner again, and Nuss was available.

"We actually got in together with zero points," Kloth said, "which was absolutely insane."

They won in Australia, then found out they were headed to Brazil, and Kloth said "it kind of just all spiraled from there." Just four years into her beach volleyball career and two into her professional career, the Sioux Falls native is one-half of one of the more promising young duos in professional beach volleyball.

In addition to the Australia win, Kloth and Nuss won the Austin stop in AVP's pro tour as well as picking up a win over former Australian Olympic silver medalists Mariafe Artacho and Taliqua Clancy at the Kuşadası Challenge in Turkey.

"It's like, 'Wow, I watched them on TV,'" Kloth said. "I think it does put a new perspective: we are competing with these people."

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Kloth has an indoor volleyball background, both at O'Gorman and when she continued her athletic career at Creighton as an outside hitter. But she had been interested in her MBA and looked at LSU when a former Creighton teammate and setter Lydia Dimke said she should give beach volleyball a try.

So many things about it were different: the playing surface, the game IQ, the elements.

"I was like, 'Why did I do this?'" Kloth said.

But at first she just wanted to see if she could: "I just wanted to see if I could physically go through the transition. And just kind of figure out how to play beach volleyball."

Kloth entered an established beach volleyball team at LSU and none were more established than Nuss, who set career win records with her previous partner, Claire Coppola. Kloth was nervous, but while they were both home for the pandemic, it was cold in Sioux Falls. So, she asked Kloth if she could come back to Baton Rouge to train with her. Nuss was bored, too, Kloth said.

"I couldn't believe that she actually said yes to playing with me for the first time," Kloth said.

Soon, training together meant playing in tournaments together. They entered a local tournament in Baton Rouge at the first moment they could. When they returned to LSU, it wasn't guaranteed that the coaching staff would keep them together, but they were paired right away.

They played a high level of competition, and won. In 2021, they were named 2021 VolleyballMag Pair of the Year. Nuss knew she wanted to pursue a professional future. Kloth started asking coaches to see if it was something she could do, too.

"I think it just came to a realization in my head: 'Oh, this is something that I want to actually keep doing,'" Kloth said.

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After a successful rookie season and two international wins, Kloth and Nuss are both living together in Baton Rogue. Between their rooms they have a "goal board" of what they hope to accomplish.

The goals were more modest in their rookie season together, but after several wins and accumulated points, what they're promising has gotten bigger: an AVP championship, wins in the Elite 16 international tournaments and an Olympic Gold Medal.

"It's definitely more scary writing all these things down because then it's out in the world," Kloth said. "But I also think it gives you an extra bit of push to make those things happen."

Follow Sioux Falls Argus Leader reporter Michael McCleary on Twitter @mikejmccleary.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Taryn Kloth, O'Gorman alum, picking up wins in pro beach volleyball