Chloe Chicoine Helps U.S. Take Bronze At U18 World Championship

Posted on by Ethan Kasales

Penn State women’s volleyball commit Chloe Chicoine helped the U.S. take home the bronze medal at the 2021 FIVB U18 World Championship Wednesday in Durango, Mexico.

Chicoine started the bronze medal match at outside hitter against Serbia and recorded a match-high 19 digs, 10 kills, an ace, and assisted on the final block in a 3-1 (25-23, 25-18, 26-28, 25-18) win.

Chicoine, who hails from Lafayette, Indiana, also made a significant impact in the semifinals against Italy. Chicoine had six kills and four digs after coming off the bench early in a 3-0 loss. The U.S. finished the tournament 7-1. Russia beat Italy in the championship match to win gold.

Chicoine missed part of her junior season for McCutcheon High School in order to participate in the prestigious international tournament as one of 12 players on the U.S. roster, which only had a couple days to practice together in Anaheim, California, before leaving for Mexico.

Chicoine, who verbally committed to the Nittany Lions on June 24, could play outside hitter or libero in college given her versatile skill set. She has quite a vertical leap and can cover much of the backcourt with her quickness defensively.

Karis Willow, a 6-foot-3 outside hitter from Findlay, Ohio, recently joined Chicoine as the second member of Penn State’s 2023 recruiting class. Chicoine and Willow can now help build a strong class next cycle via peer recruiting after issuing verbals to the Nittany Lions.

Chicoine plays her club volleyball for Circle City VBC and was a major reason why her team advanced to the USA Volleyball Junior National Championship in Las Vegas last summer. Chicoine is an outstanding athlete and will likely continue turning heads before enrolling at Penn State in 2023.