11/11/2026 6:28 AM | Volleyball
Jen Malcom Put Together Her First Top 25 Recruiting Class
The California volleyball program officially put together one of its best recruiting classes in years on Wednesday, inking a four-player class.
The class features Destinee Chukelu, Breya Dawson, Maura Hambly and Emma Kingston. According to Prep Dig, the Bears' class ranks No. 23 in the country and No. 6 in the ACC.
Destinee Chukelu - MB | 6-1 | Mableton, GA | Blessed Trinity Catholic High School/A5 Pure Volleyball
A dominant force in the middle, Chukelu comes in as the highest-ranked recruit in the class at No. 63. Throughout her high school career at Blessed Trinity Catholic, Chukelu has racked up nearly 500 total blocks, more than 800 digs and has also surpassed 100 career aces. This past season saw her and Blessed Trinity finish as state runners-up while also adding to her extremely lengthy résumé of honors.
She received AVCA recognition and was also named Blessed Trinity Defensive Player of the Year. The new Golden Bear was also chosen as Georgia's 5A Player of the Year, in addition to being selected to the All-State team. On the club side of things, Chukelu is a two-time All-American and helped her team finish third at the AAU in 2025.
"Destinee Chukelu led her high school to a Georgia 5A State Runner-Up to end her high school career," said Cal head coach Jen Malcom. "Joining Emma in the middle, Destinee has a great presence on both sides of the ball. She is able to hit behind the setter and create havoc at the net with her blocking presence. Destinee has played for one of the top clubs in the nation during her high school years and continues to upgrade her game every year. Can't wait for her to be here and work with Coach Alyssa, and to pair her with Emma!"
Destinee is planning to major in integrative biology at Cal and will pursue a career in sonography.
Breya Dawson - OH | 6-2 | San Antonio, TX | Cornerstone Christian School/Alamo Volleyball Association
Coming from one of the premier programs in the country, Breya Dawson brings a level of athleticism that simply isn't teachable. She was named MVP of her high school's league in 2023 and was also named to the All-Tournament team twice. Throughout her high school career, she has recorded more than 500 kills. She also helped lead her team to a state championship, in which she was named MVP. While it's not necessarily an award, she can also jump out of the gym and has shown an ability to dunk on a basketball hoop.
She comes from a family of athletes, as her mother, Brittany, played volleyball at UTSA, while her father, Eric, played professional basketball overseas.
"Breya Dawson comes in with high-level experience coming from a top-three high school in the nation," Malcom said. "She is a high flyer, touching over 10'6" and looking to add more inches to her vertical in college. Like Emma, Breya is also joining the squad this spring. Breya's ceiling is very high and I know she will continue to upgrade her game with Anna and Maria in the gym this spring. We are very excited to have an athlete like Breya in our gym for the next four years!"
Breya is planning to major in psychology when she gets to Cal.
Maura Hambly - OH | 5-10 | Stanford, CA | Palo Alto High School/Vision Volleyball Club
A dominant player at the high school level with a rare volleyball pedigree, Maura Hambly joins the class as a versatile, do-it-all kind of player. Throughout her high school career, Hambly was named MVP of her league twice while also helping her program win a league title in three of the four years she played. In addition to her MVP honors, she was also named Junior of the Year last season.
Hambly has racked up more than 1,300 career kills and has also shown an ability to make an impact defensively, totaling more than 1,000 career digs. During her time with Vision Volleyball, Hambly helped lead the program to two NVCA titles.
Her mother, Mary, played volleyball at the University of Illinois while also playing professionally in Germany. As for her father, Kevin, he played volleyball at BYU before embarking on a professional career in France. He will have the unique opportunity to coach against his daughter throughout her college career, as he is the head coach of Stanford's volleyball program.
"Maura Hambly has been around volleyball all of her life being a coach's daughter and you can tell it from her game," Malcom said. "She is so smooth in all facets of her game and makes it look easy out there. One thing that we love about Maura's game is her IQ and how she uses it against the other team. Maura is feisty, competitive and will do whatever she needs to win a game. She is a player that you won't want to miss playing in a Cal jersey."
Hambly will major in sustainable environmental design and is also interested in coaching somewhere down the line.
Emma Kingston - MB | 6-4 | Ladera Ranch, CA | Mater Dei/Wave Volleyball Club
Bringing one of the biggest arms in the country, Emma Kingston has been playing volleyball at the highest level in both the high school and club ranks. The 6-foot-4 middle, who also plays basketball, was named an All-American by MaxPreps during her freshman year and has one of the more impressive trophy cases. She ranks as the No. 163 player in the country, according to Prep Digs.
She and Mater Dei won a national championship in 2023, won the CIF-SS Division 1 Championship twice, were named CIF Regional Champions twice and won a CIF State Championship twice. They are also ranked as the No. 1 team in the country. Kingston has racked up nearly 600 career kills while also recording nearly 400 total blocks.
"Emma Kingston is no stranger to playing at the highest level and winning," Malcom said. "Her high school has been ranked No. 1 in the nation throughout her career, and she plays for one of the top clubs in the nation as well. Emma will be joining us this spring and looking forward to growing her game during that time. She brings in a big-time arm that is hard to stop along with great size on the block. I am excited to see her development with Coach Alyssa!"
Kingston will major in political science at Cal.
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