On December 22, Penn State’s Katie Schumacher-Cawley made history by becoming the first woman to coach a women’s volleyball team to a Division One Championship. The Nittany Lions defeated the Louisville Cardinals in four sets and captured their eighth title in program history.              

Women’s college volleyball has recently gained popularity with the number of fans growing exponentially over the past two to three years. In August of 2023, 92,003 fans watched Nebraska Volleyball square off in their school’s football stadium, setting the attendance record for a women’s sporting event. However, during the 2024 NCAA Division One women’s volleyball tournament, the indoor record for a women’s volleyball match was broken with 21,860 spectators watching the aforementioned Penn State vs. Louisville matchup. 

The NCAA tournament consists of sixty-four teams competing for the title. Thirty-one teams receive an automatic qualification and the other thirty-three are selected by the Division One Women’s Volleyball Committee. The tournament lasts around three to four weeks, with this years’ play starting on December 5 and continuing until December 22. 

This year’s tournament was extremely important for women coaches because the final two teams were headed by females: Katie Schumacher-Cawley and Dani Busboom Kelly. What makes Schumacher-Cawley’s victory even more inspiring is that, in October, she was diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer and was still able to lead her school to its first championship in a decade. 

She made history and showcased how strong women can be.

Not only was this win a pivotal moment for women coaches, but it also helped show little girls and other women that they can pursue careers in sports. Hopefully, as the seasons of volleyball roll on, an increased representation of women with leadership roles and an emphasis on diversity and inclusion becomes the norm throughout all sports.