Russ Rose Then (2007): “I feel that Blair has the potential to be a great college volleyball player but she continues to battle her body and needs to avoid the training room. At times last year during her redshirt season, she was our best right-side blocker. If we can work on some of her mechanics and get her to compete at a high level, then she will most certainly become a very strong Division 1 player. She’s bright, competitive, and she has a good frame. She has to get out of her comfort zone and push past some of the injuries that seem to be hanging around and compete to help this team as a middle or right-side.”
Russ Rose Now (2025):
2007 Season: Big Ten All-Freshman Team … played in 35 matches and 110 of 122 matches … earned first career start versus Stanford at the Yale Classic (9/15), posting 12 kills on .409 hitting … ranked fourth on the team and third in the Big Ten in hitting percentage (.366) … provided 210 kills for the season, good for an average of 1.91 kills per game … set a career high with 17 kills without an error on 23 attacks to hit .739 at Iowa (10/27) … had four double-digit kill matches and in all four of those instances hit .409 or better … ranked fifth on the team with 0.92 blocks per game … provided 101 total blocks, the fourth-highest total on the squad … had at least one block in 30 matches and posted 20 multiple-block contests … provided a career-high nine stuffs against Virginia Commonwealth (9/8) and added eight at Indiana (9/28) … posted first career service ace against Colgate (9/8) and picked up 45 digs for the season … tallied a personal-best four digs on three occasions, including versus Iowa (10/5), at Iowa (10/27) and at Michigan (11/24).
Before Penn State: Four-year volleyball letterwinner, two-year track letterwinner at Loudoun Valley High School in Purcellville, Va. … volleyball team captain for the Vikings in 2005 … two-time Virginia Gatorade Player of the Year (2004 and 2005) … member of the 2004 USA Youth National Team that won the NORCECA Championships in Puerto Rico … two-time PrepVolleyball All-American (2004 and 2005) … ranked seventh on the PrepVolleyball Top Ten Senior Aces list … Virginia State Player of the Year in 2004 … three-time First Team All-Region … two-time Region Player of the Year … three-time Dulles District Player of the Year … posted a 93-14 scholastic team record for a .870 winning percentage … led the 2004 Vikings to a Virginia State AA Championship with an undefeated 29-0 record, ultimately winning 55 consecutive matches … Virginia State record holder with 1,463 career kills and 307 solo blocks … 2004 AA Virginia State High Jump Champion … member of the Northern Virginia Volleyball Association club program with national tournament appearances in 2003, 2004 and 2005 … member of the 2006 Pittsburgh Renaissance Volleyball Club that participated in the 2006 Junior Olympics … member and officer of the National Honor Society with a 3.78 grade point average.