I don't cry much but that brought me to tears. Thinking about what Coach Katie has gone through, and what she's accomplished, humbles me.
May God continue her healing and may she continue to inspire us all.
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2024 PSU WVB Thread
- Thread starter Tom McAndrew
- Start date
I don't cry much but that brought me to tears. Thinking about what Coach Katie has gone through, and what she's accomplished, humbles me.
May God continue her healing and may she continue to inspire us all.
Penn State women’s volleyball coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley signs contract extension
Penn State’s coach will remain in Happy Valley.
www.psucollegian.com
Former Penn State women's volleyball player Alexa Markley commits to Washington
After spending three years at Penn State, Alexa Markley announced her commitment to Washington.
www.psucollegian.com
Penn State Women's Volleyball's Jocelyn Nathan Honoring 'Juice' Nickname Through Merchandise Line
The sophomore's new juice box-themed logo is available on 13 different clothing items.
onwardstate.com
match is still going on, but some observations:
- It's almost impossible to replace Jess Mruzik, or at least the Jess we saw in NCAAs last fall/winter
- Emmi Sellman isn't Mruzik, but she's a heck of an addition. She's been a 6-rotation player, and did well serving and killing out of the back row. She wasn't the best at digging in situations where PSU's block didn't get to a kill by Pitt
- Carolyn Jurevicius hasn't had a good night so far. Pitt's block is very active (she's almost always faced two blockers)
- I still worry how PSU will replace Camryn Hannah's points. Freshman Karis Willow has done well, but she's a different kind of player -- not as athletic as Hannah, and not as polished (not a surprise there, as she should be in the last months of high school, but graduated early to participate in PSU's spring practice)
- as usual, PSU has too many service errors
It's spring practice, and they are working out the kinks. PSU has a strong group of players -- only time will tell how they stack up against the elite teams in the B1G and the rest of the country. And to nobody's surprise, Pitt's Babock is a heck of a player.
- It's almost impossible to replace Jess Mruzik, or at least the Jess we saw in NCAAs last fall/winter
- Emmi Sellman isn't Mruzik, but she's a heck of an addition. She's been a 6-rotation player, and did well serving and killing out of the back row. She wasn't the best at digging in situations where PSU's block didn't get to a kill by Pitt
- Carolyn Jurevicius hasn't had a good night so far. Pitt's block is very active (she's almost always faced two blockers)
- I still worry how PSU will replace Camryn Hannah's points. Freshman Karis Willow has done well, but she's a different kind of player -- not as athletic as Hannah, and not as polished (not a surprise there, as she should be in the last months of high school, but graduated early to participate in PSU's spring practice)
- as usual, PSU has too many service errors
It's spring practice, and they are working out the kinks. PSU has a strong group of players -- only time will tell how they stack up against the elite teams in the B1G and the rest of the country. And to nobody's surprise, Pitt's Babock is a heck of a player.
The B1G network is airing a very complimentary series of PSU WVB shows this evening.
Russ Rose’s best legacy might be the number of his former players who are now coaching at other universities.
Russ Rose’s best legacy might be the number of his former players who are now coaching at other universities.
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Unfortunately, that isn't true for Penn State. We need to bring in a top pin hitter in the Spring portal. Jurevicius is so inconsistent (high ceiling, low floor). Karis Willow is a liability and clearly not a Big Ten starter.
Emmi Sellman did very well and showed a lot of fire and leadership. Jordan Hopp looked pretty good and will be a starting middle. Mendelson was very effective on the slide play.
Karis is a sophmore and I don't think she is the answer for the second OH. May be you were thinking of Gabrielle Nichols who came in and playing middle.
My mistake. When I posted my quick observations, I was 1) on a Zoom presentation about a book about the Rev War, 2) watching the Phillies - Braves game, and 3) watching the PSU - Pitt WVB match. I should have held off on posting, as there was just too much going on in my world. Anyway, I forgot that Willow was a soph. She's got size, and can hit the ball if set well. But she's not terribly athletic, and I would not be confident going into the season with her as one of the main pin hitters on the team. Gabrielle Nichols was surprisingly quiet when she was in the match as a MB.
Sellman is a great addition as a pin hitter. That said, I had concerns during the early portal window, and after watching PSU last night, I still have concerns for where the points will come from. As things stand now, you'd have Sellman on one side, and Jurevicius on the other side. Caroline is somewhat inconsistent, so I do worry what will happen when Sellman is in the back row. As things stand now with the roster, the other OH options will be from 1) Karis Willow, who I indicated above is not really someone I would trust handling that roll, 2) Marin Collins -- a true freshman (I think she enrolled early; I didn't notice her playing last night, but I may have missed her, or 3) Alexis Ewing -- a true freshman whose HS doesn't allow early graduation, so she won't join the program until the summer. There were some good options in the portal in the winter, but I think (not certain) all the elite OHs have signed elsewhere. It's not a great situation for PSU, unless they can add somebody.
Penn State women’s volleyball’s Emmi Sellman shines in first appearance as Nittany Lion
On October 18, 2024, Emmi Sellman’s 27-kill outbreak wasn’t enough for Ohio State as Penn State escaped Columbus, Ohio with a five-set victory over the Buckeyes.
www.psucollegian.com
Women's volleyball alum Haleigh Washington earns LOVB Woman of the Year Award
A former Nittany Lion won an award in LOVB.
www.psucollegian.com
That is massive, massive news. PSU is right back in the title hunt for 2026 with this transfer.
It is huge. Looking at the roster, it seemed apparent that PSU was 1 OH short of what they needed to contend. I mentioned it either before or after the Pitt scrimmage, and @NitneLiun's nice analysis this spring said the same thing.
In a perfect world, I would have preferred the girl that went in the winter via the portal from Pitt to Texas. But Martin is a tremendous addition; a great player to add to the roster. Without her, KSC really would have been depending on true freshmen as pin hitters in too many situations this fall. (PSU could have gotten lucky, and it would have worked with the freshmen, but the odds were not in PSU's favor of that being how it would have played out.)
The addition of Martin offers a great deal of flexibility on the front line. I think (not certain) that she's primarily played OPP (RS), which is also where Jurevicius played last season. But they experimented a bit with Jurevicius playing OH in the spring, and Martin has also played some as an OH. Thus, excluding the freshmen, KSC now can use some combination on the frontline of Emma Sellman (6'4"), Caroline Jurevicius (6'2"), Kennedy Martin (6'6"), and Karis Willow (6'4"), with MBs Jordan Hoop (6'2"), Maggie Mendelson (6'5"), and Catherine Burke (6'3") (and true fresh Gabrielle Nichols, 6"3"). And the true freshmen OHs -- Marin Collins (6'3"), Alexis Ewing (6'4") -- can work on their game, and not be needed to score a lot of points.
I still think Nebraska has the most imposing roster for the coming season. Truthfully, I felt that as well last season, yet PSU beat them the last weekend of the regular season, and then beat them in the NCAA semis, so roster credentials don't count for everything when two teams actually play. (Or, I just underestimated PSU's roster; hard to say for sure.)
As you mentioned, the addition of Martin (assuming the key players on PSU stay healthy) really does enable PSU to contend for a title this coming season.
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Izzy is going to have a couple of great back row attack options in Sellman and Martin. That takes some of the sting out of losing Jess Mruzik.
On a side note, reading the reactions of Nebraska, and especially Wisconsin fans on X was wonderful. For some reason, Wisky fans thought they had Martin locked up. As I noted on VT, their tears were flowing like Niagara Falls, with one fan suggesting that Sheffield make a public apology for failing to sign her.
On a side note, reading the reactions of Nebraska, and especially Wisconsin fans on X was wonderful. For some reason, Wisky fans thought they had Martin locked up. As I noted on VT, their tears were flowing like Niagara Falls, with one fan suggesting that Sheffield make a public apology for failing to sign her.
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I believe Martin had visited UW, which is why they had high hopes. They also have a pretty solid roster for the upcoming season so adding Martin would have given UW a hell of a shot for a national title as well, so I get why they had gotten their hopes up. KSC is killing it with the portal, huge props to her.
Former Penn State volleyball OH Ali Frantti makes Team USA's preliminary VNL roster
A former Penn Stater will be appearing on a Volleyball Nations League roster this summer.
www.psucollegian.com
I never tire of watching video of the 4-year run by PSU