Russ Rose Then (1995): “Terri Zemaitis demonstrated at times that she was a key go-to player on our team last year and I think over the next three years she’s going to have an opportunity to be one of the top players in the country. She has good size and ball-handling skills. Ten·i’s going to have to carry a much larger offensive load this year and she’s going to get a lot more swings than she’s received in the past. Terri is going to have a major role in the success of our program. She needs to keep herself healthy. Terri had just started to come into her own when she twist ed her knee in the NCAA semifinal game against UCLA. She established herself as one of the top players in the country the week before (at the Region matches) against Notre Dame and Nebraska.”
Russ Rose Now (2025): “Terri Zemaitis was one of the all-time greats at Penn State. In 1997 she was the NCAA Championship Most Outstanding Player on a team that didn’t win the championship — it’s a rarity for that to happen. She was a great multisport athlete — volleyball, basketball, and I believe she was an exceptional softball player. She was an incredibly competitive, enthusiastic, team player, who never wanted the attention on herself, even though the attention was always on her because of her skill and because she had such a presence. She was a Chicago kid and she had some moxie, which I always liked. She went on to do a number of things. She was with USA Volleyball for a while, and while she was in USA Volleyball in Colorado Springs, she met a young man who was a member of USA Wrestling. They got married and started a family, and I believe she had six kids and is a grandmother now. He runs a wrestling developmental program and Terri still does volleyball instruction for younger players.”
1995 Season (Sophomore) Highlights and Awards: Possibly the most dominant player at the net in the Big Ten, she possessed a killer instinct and was a ferocious finisher … Zemaitis had a breakout season in 1995, earning the Big Ten Player-of-the-Year award and establishing herself as one of the top players in the nation … named a Second-Team All-American … earned Big Ten Player-of-the Week honors for the week of November 13 … earned M.V.P. honors for the Penn State and Sunwest Bank Classics and the Penn State Invitational … also being named to the NACWAA Classic All Tournament team … her 580 kills ranked 3rd in the Big Ten (and 3rd all-time at Penn State) and her 1,319 attacks mark ranked 2nd all-time at Penn State … led the conference in blocking with a 1.64 per/set average.
Season Recap: Played in all 35 matches and all 116 sets … led the team with 580 kills (3rd in the Big Ten) and 1,319 attacks (with a .297 hitting %) … her season attacks mark ranked 2nd all-time at Penn State, while her season kills placed her 3rd … led the conference in blocking with a 1.64/set average, recording 190 for the season … tallied 299 digs (tied with Amanda Spink for 4th on the team) … posted a career high in kills (39) and attacks (72) in Penn State’s 5-set win at Illinois (Sept. 23) … set a career high with 12 blocks against Iowa (Oct. 7) … posted a season high .545 (14-2-22) hitting % at Iowa (Nov. 3) and … posted double-digit kills in 29 matches, recording more than 30 on 3 occasions … recorded a career high 21 digs against Oregon State (Sept. 9) … posted an impressive triple-double with 39 kills, 20 digs and 11 blocks in the 3-2 win (15-10,13-15,12-15,15-11,15-13 ) at Illinois and grabbed another against Iowa (22 kills, 11 digs, 12 blocks).
Before Penn State: Zemaitis graduated from Downers Grove South High School in 1994, where she excelled in both volleyball and basketball. She was the Chicago Tribune and the March of Dimes Chicagoland Female Athlete-of-the-Year, a Volleyball Monthly first-team All-American, a “Fab 50” selection, a 3-time all-stater and a 4-time all-conference selection. She was a power forward and center on her high school basketball team that went to the Illinois “Elite 8” and was a USA Today All-American, also earning All-State honors twice and all-conference honors 4 times. At Downers Grove South she totaled 1.300 career points in basketball. She averaged 20 ppg and 10 rpg in her basketball career, with a high of 44 points against (Elmhurst) York High School. Terri earned All-State player honors and was the Player of the Year for both the Chicago Tribune and the Daily Herald newspapers.
“Zemaitis set to lead Lady Spikers,” The Daily Collegian, Sept. 6, 1997
