Russ Rose Then (2005): “Sam is clearly one of the top setters in the country and has developed into a great leader. She has always had the ability to com;e up big as a blocker in critical times. We wouldn’t be able to compete at a high level without Sam and I hope her last year is her best.”
Russ Rose Now (2025): “Sam Tortorello came from Sports Performance, which was one of the top club programs in the country and had great success training players. In addition, she came from a family where all of the girls played volleyball — her older sister, Liz, was the starting setter at Wisconsin a few years earlier. Sam had good size, and long arms, and big hands, and she had a great feel for the game. So Sam was a really talented kid, who was able to come in and hit the ground running and start right away. She is on the long list of All-American setters we’ve had that went to the national team — Ellen Hensler, Salima Rockwell, Alisha Glass, and Micha Hancock. Bonnie Bremner could have done it, but it wasn’t what she wanted to do with her life when she was done playing at Penn State. I think Sam had her own level for who she was and what she did. She was an All-American in club, and in high school, and in college. She was a really good volleyball player and had a great career.”
2005 Season (Senior): Honored as a First Team AVCA All-American and the 2005 Big Ten Player of the Year, she led the team with 13.37 assists/set, was 2nd on the team with 28 service aces, recorded 93 total blocks (6th on the team), and averaged 1.03 kills/set (with a .289 hitting percentage). She finished her career as 2nd in the Penn State record books in career assists with 6,087 and 1st in career assists per set with 13.35.
Before Penn State: Volleyball Magazine’s “Fab 50” selection; a four-year letterwinner at Joliet Catholic Academny in Joliet, Illinois; two-time captain for the Angels; also a member of Sports Performance for eight years (1994-2002); led Sports Performance 18-1 to 2002 AAU National Championship; Chicago Sun-Times 2001 Player of the Year for Volleyball; 2000 USA Youth National Team member; four-time AAU All-America honoree; 2001 AAU Most Valuable Player; member of the 2000 Junior Olympic All-Tournament team; led Sports Performance to a second-place finish at the National Junior Classic in 2000 and first place finishes at the National Junior Classic and AAU Nationals and claimed the Junior Olympic Silver Division championship in 2001; named Best Setter at the the 2000, 2001, and 2002 National Junior Classic; member of the National Honor Society, Student Council, and earned a high school leadership scholarship.
“Tortorello neaars end of journey,” The Daily Collegian, Dec. 1, 2005
“Senior week is special,” The Daily Collegian, Oct. 10, 2005