Russ Rose Then (1997): “I think Christy is the type of person that coaches dream they have the opporunity to work with. A person that you say, ‘these are the things you need to work on’ and they immerse themselves in that and yet still have the energy to be a great student and the focus to be a quality person. I think Christy is without question the most physical player on our team. She spent a great deal of time in the weight room and has taken a real strong nutritional approach to her development. I think when you combine her physical development with her desire to improve, you have a player that’s going to find her way on the court somewhere. I thought the enthusiasm and excitement that she brought to our team last year was at times contagious and I don’t think we would have had the success we had without Christy. We’re going to depend on her this year to be our top defensive player and I see continued positive things for Christy in Penn State volleyball.”
Russ Rose Now (2025): “Christy is one of the all-time great characters. And so much energy. She was 100% committed to the team all of the time. She was undersized, but she was the center of the energy at times for the team. She was always smiling and always mischievous. And she was a really great competitor. At the 1997 National Championship match against Stanford, a ball hit her in the face and it dislodged an artificial tooth she had. But she played the remainder of the match, even with the gap at the front of her mouth after the tooth was dislodged. Great competitor and a really valuable member of the team.”
What Her Teammates Said: “There’s no doubt our team feeds off of her intensity.” Bonnie Bremner, Penn State starting setter, The Collegian, December 8, 1997
1997 Season (Junior): Academic All-Big Ten … Honorable Mention All-Big Ten … Big Ten Player of the Week (10/27) … played in 117 of 120 sets and all 36 matches … ranked 3rd on the team with 3.01 kills/set … led the team with 2.71 digs/set … was 6th on the team with 0.59 blocks/set … her 11 service aces ranked 5th on the team.
Before Penn State: Cochran started all four years for the Bethlehem Catholic High School volleyball and basketball squads; an outside hitter and middle blocker, she was a three-time All-State selection; MVP of the Eastern Penn Conference and District II in 1993 and 1994; twice selected as the Express TImes Player of the Year as she led the Hawks to the state semifinal match in 1994 and the finals in 1991; the two-time team captain played in the 1995 Mizuno All-Star game; a two-year starter for the Quickset Elite Volleyball Club team; Cochran was equally successful on the basketball court, earning all-conference and all-area accolades three times while guiding the Hawks to the state finals in 1991 and the semi-finals in 1993 and 1994; the National Merit Award Finalist led the league in rebounding and topped the 1,000 point plateau during her career as the squad captured four district titles and two conference Championships.
“Size of the fight,” The Daily Collegian, Oct. 20, 1998
“Queen of Spikes,” The Daily Collegian, Sept. 16, 1998
“Cochran gets physical against N. Illinois,” The Daily Collegian, Dec. 8, 1997
“Bethlehem spiker readies for journey as lady spiker,” The Daily Collegian, Feb. 8, 1995
