Penn State signs two top 5 recruits in 2024

Penn State volleyball is finishing up its regular season and is on pace for an NCAA record 42^nd straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Nittany Lions are the only team to have made every single NCAA Tournament. Penn State is currently 17-8 (11-5) coming off an upset of No. 2 Wisconsin Saturday night. Second year head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley is now picking up momentum on the recruiting trail after adding two top 5 recruits nationally for the 2024 class.

Izzy Starck headlines the class

The first of two top 5 recruits, the 2024 class is headlined by No. 1 overall recruit Izzy Starck out of Colorado Springs, Colorado. Before this season, Starck had won the 2022 Colorado Gatorade player of the year and Sportswomen player of the year.

The 6-1 Starck is a 1^st team Under Armour All-American and regarded as the best setter in the 2024 class. The star recruit also was a member of USA Volleyball U19 National team in 2022 and 2023 and won the 2022 U19 Pan American Cup Gold medal.

Both of Izzy Starck’s parents and sister both have played division one college volleyball. Her sister, Anjelina, is currently a junior on the Penn State volleyball roster, and the two will get to play the 2024 season together. Her mother Errica, played at Texas and eventually went on to have a professional career. Starck’s father also played collegiate volleyball at Ball State.

Ava Falduto becomes second top 5 recruit of 2024 class

Falduto is the No. 5 overall recruit in the nation and was the 2022 and 2023 1^st-team All-State in Illinois. She also participated in the U19 Pan American Cup with future teammate of Izzy Starck for USA Volleyball. Falduto won the best receiver award in that tournament.

Falduto, like Starck, is also on the 1^st-Team Under Armour All-American. She also won gold in the 2023 FIVB U19 World Championship for the United States.

Return to glory for Penn State volleyball?

While Penn State volleyball does hold onto the NCAA Tournament appearance record, it hasn’t reached the Final 4 since 2017, and hasn’t won a National Championship since 2014. That may not sound like too long of a time period, but for a program whose expectation is to win national titles, it is considered a notable drought.

Penn State volleyball was the first team to win 7 National Championships when it won its last in 2014. Since then, Stanford has won 3 more titles (2016,2018,2019) to reach 9 total and Nebraska has won 2 more titles (2015,2017) to reach a total of 5.

Penn State volleyball may be back on track to winning national titles again, with a 2024 recruiting class that features two top 5 recruits. The Nittany Lions are entering a new era under Head Coach Schumacher-Cawley, who took over for the legendary Russ Rose in 2022. Penn State hasn’t had the talent to compete with the top teams in the Big Ten like Nebraska and Wisconsin, but that may be changing soon.

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