Emily Thater

Personal: Thater graduated from Missouri with a degree in marketing and advertising. She is the daughter of David and Jennifer Thater. Her brother, Daniel, competed in cross country and track and field at Tulsa from 2010-13.

Other Professional Experience: Thater is a seven-year professional volleyball veteran, having spent the last two seasons with Levallois Paris St. Cloud in France, where she was a finalist for Best Middle Blocker in the French Series A during the 2024 campaign. Prior to that, she played two seasons with Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy in France and competed for Aachen in the 2019-20 season after spending two years (2017-19) with Schwarz-Weiss Erfurt in the German Bundesliga. Thater is set to play for Omaha in the 2025 League One Volleyball season.

At Missouri: Thater played four years at Missouri from 2013 to 2016, where she helped lead the Tigers to two Southeastern Conference championships. She was part of the winningest class in team history, contributing to 105 victories over her four seasons. Thater finished her college career ranked fourth in Missouri's history with 422 total blocks and 353 block assists. She also ranked fifth all-time with 69 solo blocks and a block-per-set average of 0.92, along with 715 career kills. During her senior year in 2016, Thater played in 120 sets across 33 matches, recording a career-high 212 kills, 23 service aces, and 109 total blocks. She registered double-digit kills three times, with a season-high 14 kills against Kentucky. She also recorded at least one total block in every match that season, with six matches featuring five or more rejections. Thater contributed 52 digs as well. As a junior, she played in 122 sets over 33 matches, contributing 182 kills and a career-high 125 total blocks, including a season-high nine blocks against Alabama. In her sophomore year, she tallied 171 kills across 32 matches and added 24 service aces, 57 digs, and 95 total blocks. During her freshman season in 2013, Thater recorded 151 kills and 93 total blocks, including 17 solo blocks, ranking second on the team. She also ranked third on the team with 35 service aces, helping Missouri to a 35-1 record and a 35-match win streak.