DECEMBER 22, 2024 (Louisville, Kentucky) — Katie Schumacher-Cawley became the first female coach to lead her team to the Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship. In front of a noisy, championship-record crowd of 21,860 at the KFC Yum! Center, the 35-2 Nittany Lions earned the school’s eighth national title with a 3-1 win over Louisville.
Following a tight first set, which Penn State won 25-23, things got more dramatic in the second.
The Nittany Lions jumped ahead early, leading by as many as seven points, before Louisville rallied from a 24-19 deficit to send it beyond 25. The two powerhouse teams traded big plays, before a huge Louisville block gave the Cards the 34-32 win in a set that saw them turn back 10 set points.
Schumacher-Cawley’s squad jumped ahead early in the third and maintained a comfortable-enough cushion to take a 25-20 win. AVCA First-Team All-American Jess Mruzik led the charge with 10 kills in the set.
A similar pattern emerged in the decisive fourth, which saw Penn State go in front 10-2, and keep that the momentum to finish off the Cardinals, 25-17.
Schumacher-Cawley did a masterful job in her third season on the sidelines at Penn State. Her team navigated a rigorous schedule and rolled to a 35-2 record and the 2024 Big Ten championship.
The path to the ultimate title was a very difficult one, as the Nittany Lions had to beat No. 6 Creighton, No. 3 Nebraska, and No. 4 Louisville in its final three NCAA tourney matches to cut down the nets. But, Schumacher-Cawley’s squad was more than up to the task, and she claimed her place in history.
Nearly 50 percent of Division I women’s volleyball teams have female coaches, which has been the case in recent years. Despite the opportunities, a championship hadn’t come … until now.
Schumacher-Cawley joins a long list of female coaches who have led their teams to collegiate volleyball titles in 2024. Of the 11 women’s champs that were crowned this fall, seven of them were coached by females:
- Katie Schumacher-Cawley of Penn State, NCAA Division I
- Heather Pavlik of Juniata, NCAA Division III
- Candace Moats of Indiana Wesleyan, NAIA
- Thais Baziquetto-Allen of Florida SouthWestern, NJCAA Division I
- Kristi McDaniel of Arlington Baptist, NJCAA Division II
- Katie Hill of Grace College, NCCAA Division I
- Sarah Ritchie of Feather River, 3C2A
