Penn State women’s volleyball senior Quinn Menger has established herself as one of the team’s strongest leaders heading into the 2024 season, as players routinely look to her for guidance.
Menger has taken on a variety of roles during her three years on campus, always putting the team first and never complaining. She and Jess Mruzik are the frontrunners to assume captain duties for the Nittany Lions this fall given their personalities and commitment to the program.
Whether it’s backing up Izzy Starck at setter or working tirelessly on her left-handed serve as a defensive specialist, Katie Schumacher-Cawley and Penn State’s coaching staff can rely on Menger as a positive example for her teammates in practice and a culture-driver off the court. When recruits or potential transfers visit campus, Menger is often the one tasked with showing them around.
Menger, who hails from the Richmond suburb of Powhatan, Virginia, is planning to attend law school after graduating from Penn State. She gives one of the best interviews on the team, speaking confidently while sharing her thoughts about volleyball and everyday life, so the idea of her holding a commanding presence as a lawyer is only natural.
Menger became the first Penn State women’s volleyball player since Emily Sciorra in 2020 to dance in THON, the annual 46-hour, no-sitting, no-sleeping marathon benefiting pediatric cancer care and research held every February. Since 1977, THON has raised more than $219 million for Four Diamonds, based out of Penn State Health Children’s Hospital in Hershey, PA. Menger and the Penn State community helped raise a record $16,955,683.63 in the year leading up to THON 2024.
“Quinn is one of the hardest workers in our program,” Schumacher-Cawley said last November. “She is one who takes on challenges regularly and always goes all in on whatever is put in front of her. Quinn is a great teammate, team player, and I’m not surprised that she has the willingness to participate in an event that is bigger than herself.”
Menger was among six Penn State athletes who represented the university’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) while dancing in THON. More than 700 students danced this year and tens of thousands of supporters attended the event to cheer them on. You can read more about THON’s mission and history in our article previewing Menger’s participation in the Penn State tradition.
Menger’s teammates lined up with hand-written signs outside the Bryce Jordan Center to show their support for her as she and the rest of the dancers made their way to the floor to begin the weekend and stopped by often to check on her.
Menger danced alongside a trio of field hockey players in Brie Barraco, Lauren Delgado, and Caroline Myers, as well as a pair of soccer players in Molly Martin and Van Danielson. Penn State’s athletic department caught up with Menger during THON weekend for an interview about her experience.
After Penn State’s 3-1 loss to Pitt on April 14 at Fitzgerald Field House in Oakland, part of a two-match spring exhibition series with the Panthers, DigNittanyVolleyball asked Menger a few questions about dancing in THON.
“I still don’t even know how to put it into words, and it was months ago,” Menger said. “I’m so grateful to have been a part of it. I tried the whole weekend to not complain, because I was like, ‘What’s that going to get me? I’m just going to smile and go through it.’ I loved it. It was amazing.”
Menger and the rest of the Penn State women’s volleyball team participated in athlete hour, where they played games and got to know the THON children in attendance, before taking the stage at the BJC for the fan-favorite pep rally, which features dance routines by each of the Penn State teams that are in town that weekend and not away competing.
“We got so close,” Menger said of her fellow student-athletes who also danced. “I already was good friends with Molly. Van and I became so close. I still see him all the time. I just adore them. They have the same attitude I have. They want to be a part of something bigger than themselves. That’s what makes Penn State so unique. I was grateful to have done it with those five.”
Menger discussed what makes THON so important to her and gave some advice for future dancers.
“Walking around with the kids, that’s what makes it, that’s your why,” Menger said. “That’s why you’re there. Doing it like that is something so special and so unique. I would also say bring compression socks. I forgot those and my feet suffered by hour 40. That would be my advice.”
Menger also gave a few parting thoughts on THON weekend and how pleased she is to have participated in the event, which is known around the globe as the world’s largest student-run philanthropy. Many people who have no affiliation with Penn State know about THON and its impact given its wide-reaching positive message, showcased via live streams and significant media coverage each year.
“It’s something I was made to do,” Menger said. “I’m so happy we raised that much money for the kids. It still has an impact. I still get calls from Hershey Medical all the time thanking me for what I did. I’m so grateful I did it. It was so surreal. I have no words.”