Izzy Starck Earns Third Big Ten Freshman Of The Week Recognition

Posted on by Ethan Kasales

Izzy Starck became the first Penn State women’s volleyball player since Jonni Parker in 2018 to earn three Big Ten Freshman of the Week awards in one year, doing so in the first four weeks of the 2024 season.

Starck shared Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors with USC outside hitter Jadyn Livings. The only other freshman from the conference to be recognized so far was Washington’s Julia Hunt, who became the first player in program history to receive a Big Ten honor two weeks ago. Wisconsin’s Sarah Franklin, Oregon’s Onye Ofoegbu, and USC’s Mia Tuaniga joined Starck and Livings as last week’s honorees.

Starck was named to the Penn State Classic all-tournament team alongside Jess Mruzik (MVP) and Gill Grimes after leading the Nittany Lions to wins over JMU and Yale last weekend at Rec Hall. Starck also earned all-tournament nods following the Penn State Invitational and the Kentucky Invitational.

Starck totaled 108 assists, 23 digs, 11 kills, five blocks, and four aces in three matches last week, which also included Penn State’s first loss of the season, a 3-0 setback at Pitt. Starck continued her strong play in Wednesday’s Big Ten opener, which saw her guide Penn State’s offense to a .369 hitting percentage in a road sweep of Purdue.

It was Penn State’s third top-10 win of the season and its first sweep of the Boilermakers since November 19, 2016 at Rec Hall. Starck is playing at a very high level, spreading the ball around to Penn State’s hitters with extreme success, and that was certainly the case again Wednesday. She had 38 assists and 13 digs against Purdue, both of which led all players.

Starck’s 433 assists rank second in the Big Ten behind only Purdue’s Taylor Anderson, while Starck’s 10.82 assists per set places her third in the conference behind Nebraska’s Bergen Reilly (11.03) and Anderson (10.85). The Nittany Lions (11-1, 1-0 Big Ten) have consistently hit above .300 as a team so far this season with Starck leading the offense.

Caroline Jurevicius, a redshirt freshman pin hitter and Starck’s roommate, immediately mentioned Starck’s confidence when pinpointing an area she saw her improve during non-conference play.

β€œI think that, coming in as a freshman and being the setter on a top-10 team, that’s daunting, but she’s taken it by the horns and she’s gone after it,” Jurevicius said during her Tuesday press conference. “I’m super proud of her.”

Katie Schumacher-Cawley has praised Starck for her attention to detail and work ethic in the gym and film room on multiple occasions this season, calling her a “student of the game.” When discussing her freshman setter Tuesday, Schumacher-Cawley said she’s looking forward to seeing Starck continue to improve over the next four years after having two one-year starters at setter to begin her Penn State tenure.

“It’s awesome,” she said. “I’m so excited for her and that she does have multiple years left. We were in a situation where we had to pull players [from the transfer portal] like we did.”

Seleisa Elisaia and Mac Podraza both have their strengths at the position and led Penn State to Sweet 16 berths in 2022 and 2023, respectively, but Starck seems to have another gear that sets her apart from some of the recent Penn State setters, however talented they may have been.

β€œThe thing with Izzy is that she’s very good right now, but I know she knows that she has so much room to grow and to get better and to continue to learn about the game,” Schumacher-Cawley said. “I’m thrilled for her. I think she understands the value of our passers and the attackers who she has. I think that all goes into her getting awards. I think that the team is happy for her.”

Starck admitted she’s been a bit surprised to see her name so frequently on the weekly conference award press releases in the early going of the season when she spoke to the media before Tuesday’s practice at Rec Hall.

β€œI definitely appreciate it,” Starck said. “When I see it, it’s kind of a shock, because it’s a lot of times in a short four weeks. I never thought it was going to be like that or anything. I see it and I’m like, β€˜I’m getting it because I’m constantly improving.’ I think just focusing on, β€˜What can I do next? What can I get better at?’ That type of stuff.”