University of Pennsylvania Volleyball Team Returns to Action This Weekend

Strategic Insights -

The University of Pennsylvania volleyball team will face off against Coppin State, Lafayette, and Towson this weekend, with a mix of familiar faces and new opponents.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Quakers are back in Baltimore this weekend, facing Coppin State on Friday and Towson on Saturday at SECU Arena.
  • Penn returns 98.2% of its kills, 94.0% of its blocks, 93.0% of its digs, and 98.7% of its service aces from last season.
  • Seven Penn players hail from the state of California, including seniors Claire Deller and Jalen Tennyson, who played in the Anteater Classic last weekend.
  • Head coach Tyler Hagstrom is in his first season at Penn, having been hired on July 16 after leading Bucknell to a 21-5 record and a program-record 13 Patriot League wins.
  • The Quakers were picked fifth in the Ivy League preseason media poll, with Yale, Princeton, Brown, and Cornell finishing above them.
  • Penn made significant strides last season, going 13-10 overall and 7-7 in Ivy League play, more than tripling their win totals from the previous season.
  • The team returns a strong core, including four players who had more than 100 kills last year and three others who had more than 50.
  • Sophomores Jenna Garner and Adell Murray were named to the Anteater Classic all-tournament team, with Garner finishing the weekend with 26 kills, .303 hitting percentage, and 34 digs.
  • Junior Zada Sanger finished the weekend with a team-high 30 kills, including a five-set run across the Fresno State and Irvine matches where she put down 20 kills without an error.
  • The team has earned All-Ivy recognition, with Sanger and Murray receiving honorable mention recognition, and Reid earning honorable mention recognition as a freshman.
  • Penn players earned Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors three times last season, with Murray and Moore receiving the award on consecutive weeks in September.

Statistics:

  • 98.2% of Penn's kills from last season return this season.
  • 94.0% of Penn's blocks from last season return this season.
  • 93.0% of Penn's digs from last season return this season.
  • 98.7% of Penn's service aces from last season return this season.
  • Seven Penn players hail from California.
  • 11 players played in at least 62 of Penn's 88 sets last season, with 10 returning this season.
  • Penn returns its top two setters and 6 players who ended the campaign with more than 20 blocks.
  • The Quakers started the 2025 season on the right foot, going 2-1 in Irvine last weekend.

Sources:

  • University of Pennsylvania Athletics news release
  • ESPN+ website
  • FloSports website
  • Ivy League website
  • Bucknell Athletics website
  • University of Illinois Athletics website
  • PennAthletics.com