Penn State women’s volleyball alumna and second-year Rutgers assistant coach Abby Detering spoke fondly of returning to Rec Hall again following Wednesday’s Big Ten opener between her Scarlet Knights and Katie Schumacher-Cawley’s Nittany Lions.
Penn State hit .390 in a sweep of Rutgers to begin its 20-match conference schedule, improving to 7-3 on the season. The Scarlet Knights fell to 8-3 after posting their best non-conference record since 2012. We also caught up with Detering, a setter who led the Nittany Lions to the 2017 Final Four, after Penn State’s sweep of Rutgers last October at Rec Hall.
Detering is now in her fifth season coaching at the collegiate level, as she spent three seasons at Kent State before joining Caitlin Schweihofer’s Rutgers staff prior to last fall. As a senior with the Nittany Lions, Detering guided Penn State to a 33-2 record and earned AVCA All-American honorable mention. A native of Mentor, Ohio, Detering transferred to Penn State in 2016 after two seasons as a Florida Gator.
“Abby, obviously, has the experience of playing in the Big Ten,” Schweihofer said at Big Ten volleyball media days in August. “She played in the Final Four. She played for a historically successful program. Her having been there and done that in a way that was successful I think was a wonderful model for this team.
“She’s an excellent recruiter. She has great relationships with a lot of the top clubs in the country, and she’s really allowed me to grow in my confidence as a head coach. Having someone who played at that high level who wanted to be part of my staff is really inspiring, and I’m very grateful for her to be a part of it.”
Taylor Humphrey, a sophomore outside hitter for the Scarlet Knights, joined Schweihofer at Big Ten volleyball media days August 1-2 in Chicago. The Byron Center, Michigan, standout touched on what Detering brings to the team. Occasionally, Detering will even jump into scrimmages to show her players how it’s done.
“She brings a lot of energy all the time,” Humphrey said. “She had an amazing experience at Penn State. It was fun to pick her brain and try to find, ‘Alright, what’s Rutgers’ system? How do we want to move forward as a program?'”
Detering discussed Russ Rose stopping by to see her at Rutgers’ practice before Wednesday’s match at Rec Hall, her impression of Penn State’s coaching staff, what the Nittany Lions’ offense did well against her team, and her advice moving forward this season for the current Penn State players, among other topics, in an exclusive interview with DigNittanyVolleyball. The transcript of questions and answers can be found below.
I saw you had a chance to catch up with Coach Rose today. What was that like?
“I love seeing coach. It’s always good. We talk all the time. It was good to see him in person and that he’s doing well. It’s like old times coming back in the gym with him.”
What was it like being back in Rec Hall?
“Oh, great. I love the atmosphere here with the band. Now, especially with Big Ten play, it was a nice start.”
Rutgers had its best non-conference record since 2012. What do you think went well for the team?
“Our team’s really young. We have 11 underclassmen on our team, so with this young group, I think we’re heading in the right direction. We’re figuring out lineups, they’re figuring out how to compete, especially against these tougher teams. The two losses we had were in five sets. I’m really proud of them. They’ve been working hard. I feel good about this season.”
How do you think you’ve grown as a coach in your second season at Rutgers and fifth overall?
“Each year, I’m becoming a better coach. I have great mentorship. I think Caitlin [Schweihofer’s] fantastic in having our roles as a staff established, and her giving us the green light to move forward in those roles, I think, just gives you more confidence in what you’re doing. Also, our players are great. The relationships that we’ve made, it makes it fun working with them. That’s why we do this job. They’re super coachable and they have a lot of energy. They want to win, and they want to make a name for Rutgers, so it’s been great.”
What impresses you about Katie [Schumacher-Cawley] and her staff?
“They’re great. I think that they’ve done really amazing things for this program in bringing players in to help this team continue to be at the top level. It’s fun to play against them. Like I said, this atmosphere is great, but their team is always going to be one of the tops in this league. If we can get after them and compete, that’s a win within itself.”
What are some things you thought Penn State did well in this match?
“They have a good offense. They hit the ball hard. They’re not going to let up. You have to give your max effort every point, and not just think that they’re going to give you some points. In these matches, you just have to know that they’re a gritty team, and you have to be ready to go the entire time.”
What are you most looking forward to about the rest of the season?
“I’m excited for it. I’m excited for each match, to go in and to compete. Like I said, our team is young. They have a drive within them to continue to build Rutgers volleyball. We had an awesome preseason. I think that going out and competing in matches like these is only going to continue to give us confidence that we can win and move this program in that direction that we want to go.”
How does your experience as a player help you as a coach?
“I think not being too removed from playing has helped me, because I understand what it’s like in those stressful moments of, either the atmosphere is really high and the crowd is against you, or it’s a tight match and, ‘What is the mindset in that moment?’ I think that has helped me coaching-wise, because I understand what the players might need in that time. I think it’s just the communication and the relationships in that, too.”
What do you enjoy about recruiting? How has it changed the last few years with the transfer portal, NIL, and things like that?
“NIL is a toss-up. I think people are still navigating it. I think it’s great for athletes. You’re on one of the biggest stages. If you get an opportunity to be sponsored or get a deal, I think you should be able to do that. I love recruiting. For where we’re going as a program, it’s all about mentality with players. We need to have gritty players who want to make a change and know that it’s not going to be easy. We have players like that on our team. When I’m going out to recruit at these tournaments, it’s not always the obvious, ‘Ooh, shiny player.’ It’s the players who may be down in sets and they want to come back and win. Those are who we’re looking for here.”
Rutgers added Erika Williams from the transfer portal this offseason. What stands out about her?
“Erika’s gritty. She came in and she obviously knows the Penn State mentality. She’s become a natural leader on our team. She’s giving a great effort. I think a lot of players have learned from her, especially with us being so young. They’ve taken to her lead naturally. I think that’s her biggest thing. She’s going to continue to develop as the year goes on, especially with having a bigger role now here on this team. I think there are going to be a lot of great things to come for her.”
What advice do you have for the Penn State team this season?
“I think my best advice is to always be playing for the people here, to represent your university, because there’s a lot of support here. I come back and there are people who are still coming to give me gifts and say hello. People are really invested here. It’s not just yourself in that moment. You’re playing for something so much bigger, so remember that. And then, obviously, play the Penn State way of staying gritty and getting after it each and every day.”