Under new coach Tyler Hagstrom, Penn volleyball notched its first wins — and those won’t be the last.
Last weekend, the Quakers laced up for the first time this season as participants of the UC Irvine Anteater Classic tournament. Over 2,500 miles away from Philadelphia, the Quakers did not have home-court advantage, but the Red and Blue swept both host UC Irvine and Fresno State 3-0 to start the season off hot.
Coming off of its most successful season yet, Penn volleyball was eager to maintain that momentum and keep pushing to exceed expectations. However, the departure of former head coach Meredith Schamun in June meant the Quakers were missing a pivotal piece on their road to success.
But Hagstrom — the heavily decorated former coach of the Bucknell Bison — will keep that momentum alive. With just two months at the reins of the Red and Blue, Hagstrom has already begun to get the ball rolling and has no plans to stop after notching his first wins last weekend.
At the helm of the program, Hagstrom plans to approach this season with tranquility and determination to keep reaching for success.
“As a team, we talk about having balance. … We set the standard that we hold each other accountable for. For this team, everyone’s got to stay bought in throughout the season and understand that they’re a big piece of this greater puzzle,” Hagstrom said.
Before coming to Penn, Hagstrom saw great success as head coach for Bucknell from 2020-25. In the span of just five seasons, Hagstrom helped flip Bucknell from a losing program to a Patriot League title contender. Hagstrom went down in history as Bucknell’s all-time winningest coach and is coming to Penn off an incredibly competitive 2024 season, during which the Bison finished with a 21-5 record and 0.808 winning percentage, their highest in program history. His experience will certainly be helpful in continuing Penn volleyball’s rise in the Ancient Eight.
“Coaching this team has truly been one of the greatest honors of my career,” Hagstrom said in a press release announcing his departure from Bucknell. “From record-setting seasons to developing a strong team culture, I’m so proud of all we’ve accomplished together. The future of Bucknell Volleyball is undeniably bright, and I'll be cheering them on every step of the way.”
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While Hagstrom is a newcomer to the Penn community, he is not new to the Ivy League. Prior to Bucknell, Hagstrom represented the Ivy League as an assistant coach at Princeton from 2016-19, during which he helped lead the Tigers to an overall 73-27 record, back-to-back Ivy League titles, and three NCAA championship appearances. Hagstrom also coached multiple All-Ivy players. When asked about the competitive rivalry against Princeton and his history with the Tigers, Hagstrom said he is taking this season one step at a time.
“I liked my time there, but at the end of the day, I want to win here. I want this team to be successful against every team we play,” Hagstrom said. “Rivalries are nice because it means both teams are playing at a high level … but ultimately, there’s a lot of competition in the Ivy League, so it’s important we have that ‘one game at a time’ mentality.”
Though the rest of this season certainly won’t get any easier for the Quakers, Hagstrom has confidence in his team’s ability to continue to improve. From long nights, early mornings, and double-day practices, the Quakers have been working hard to pick up exactly where they left off last season — with the same hunger and fight to reach new heights.
“As a program, we have big goals, and I think we need to try [to] reach them by maintaining consistency. Day to day, we have to play hard and as a team. I think good things happen from there, one day at a time.”
The Quakers’ next match will be in Baltimore as participants in the Towson-Coppin State Invitational this weekend, and they continue non-conference play until the end of the month.
In the Ivy League opener on Sept. 26, the rivalry between Penn and Princeton will reignite as Hagstrom and the Quakers face the Tigers.
As Penn volleyball trains under Hagstrom and irons out its final practices before conference play, one thing’s for certain: The wins are just beginning.
