When then-Penn State Athletic Director M. Grace Calhoun hired Katie Schumacher-Cawley as the team’s assistant head coach in 2018, she had already spent a season as Kenneth L. Gross’s head coach. “Her head coaching experience and successful playing career make her the right fit to lead our program,” said Grace Calhoun. Yet, at that, maybe even she didn’t know just how true that statement would become.
Fast-forward to 2024, and Schumacher-Cawley isn’t just the head coach of the program, but a record-setting one. Last December, the 45-year-old created NCAA volleyball and Penn State history, becoming the first female head coach to lay hands on the national title. Yet, what truly inspired the volleyball world was that Schumacher-Cawley did it while battling cancer. And she’s ready to make history again, following in the footsteps of legendary basketball coach Dawn Staley.
Last year, Staley became the first individual female coach to win the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance at the ESPY since Kay Yow in 2007. Now, barely a year later, Katie Schumacher-Cawley will earn the special honor on July 16. “Someone call @merriamwebster – because we have a new definition of perseverance,” The V Foundation for Cancer Research wrote after ESPN announced it on June 30.
Special honorees for the 2025 @ESPYS have been announced!
Looking forward to celebrating these inspiring individuals
More: https://t.co/wxF2UV6uXO pic.twitter.com/3qjb1AwHhl
— ESPN (@espn) June 30, 2025
This story is developing…
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