1981 Media Guide: “Middle hitter … awesome player, according to Coach Russ Rose … left school to train with the U.S. team last January but returned to Penn State to finish her education … named to 1980 AIAW All-America team at nationals … ‘Has added enthusiasm for the game and is playing above my expectations,’ Rose says … slected MVP at the 1981 Pitt Invitational … National Sports Festival participant in 1978 and 1979 and World University team alternate in 1979 and 1981.”
Russ Rose Now (2026): “When I came to Penn State in 1979, Ellen Crandall was here and was one of the top players in the country. Back in the day, the AIAW [Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women] selected six All-Americans, and Ellen was one of them in 1979, 1980, and 1981. She was a farm girl and incredibly strong and could take a big swing at the ball. Not many people hit the ball as hard as Ellen Crandall. She was one of those people who, when she hit the ball, it made a different sound. When she hit the ball, I was like ‘Oh, that’s interesting.’ The last player I thought was like that was Stanford’s Kathryn Plummer. After Penn State, Ellen spent time with the national team trying out for the Olympic team and then went on to a really good career as the volleyball coach at Connecticut. Ellen was a great, great player.”
1981 Season (Senior) Highlights and Awards: AVCA All-American … AVCA All-Region … Letterwinner.
Before Penn State: Lettered in volleyball, basketball, track and cheerleading at General McLane High School in Girard, PA. Spent her senior year in Australia with the Queensland club team, playing in the national title match. Played with All-State in volleyball.
“Lady Spikers Win Delaware Invite,” The Daily Collegian, Oct. 19, 1981
“Spiker Crandall is Eastern Star,” The Daily Collegian, Nov. 6, 1979