Carleton competes in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC), one of the top leagues in the NCAA Division III. The MIAC has sent multiple teams to the NCAA Championships in each of the last 12 years, including five seasons when the conference advanced at least four teams to the national tournament.

Jacki Smith took over the head coaching duties in 2018. She is the ninth coach in Carleton volleyball history, taking over the reins of the program from Heidi Jaynes, who was promoted to a full-time athletics administration role in March after registering a school-record 272-212 ledger in 19 seasons at the helm.

Since 2004, the Knights have had seven players receive All-America recognition. Most recently, Lucy Stevens '18 was twice tabbed for All-America Honorable Mention. She joined Tina Churchill ’89, Maura O'Leary '96, and Camille Benson ’15 as the only players in program history to be named to the All-MIAC team in three consecutive seasons. Stevens finished third all-time in program history with 1,183 career kills and a .312 attack percentage over her four years with the Knights.