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Monday, Jan. 12, 2026
The Daily Pennsylvanian

The DP is taking time to reflect on the past. By any definition of the word, Fink has transformed the Red and Blue program in her brief tenure here. After going 1-6 in Ivy League play in her debut season in 2010 and finishing in the bottom half of the league in each of her first three years, she has taken the Quakers from pretenders to contenders, as the team has already clinched its fourth winning season in Ivy play in the last five years. 

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Until this season, Furrer had spent her entire Penn career — and her entire life — as an outside hitter, one of the players whose job it is to go up in the air, spike the ball with authority, and finish off as many points as possible with a devastating attack.  Now, everything has changed for the redheaded Texan: her position, her role, her stats, her spot on the court and even the color of her jersey. 


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Until this season, Furrer had spent her entire Penn career — and her entire life — as an outside hitter, one of the players whose job it is to go up in the air, spike the ball with authority, and finish off as many points as possible with a devastating attack.  Now, everything has changed for the redheaded Texan: her position, her role, her stats, her spot on the court and even the color of her jersey. 


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The DP is taking time to reflect on the past. By any definition of the word, Fink has transformed the Red and Blue program in her brief tenure here. After going 1-6 in Ivy League play in her debut season in 2010 and finishing in the bottom half of the league in each of her first three years, she has taken the Quakers from pretenders to contenders, as the team has already clinched its fourth winning season in Ivy play in the last five years. 





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But I do think we can always try to do more in our everyday lives to just be kind to one another. It doesn’t cost any time or energy to smile at the person walking into Van Pelt as you’re walking out. No one will ever be worse off if you tell your friends you love them just a little more often. Ask a friend how they’re doing. You may not know it, but that person might breathe a whole lot easier because of you.



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For a number of former Penn student-athletes, however, the most difficult move of their lives often ends up being the most necessary one. And while starting their next chapters after leaving Penn varsity teams provides former Quakers with major fulfillments in their own right, the sports world’s unique thrills of competition, triumphs and camaraderie often prove difficult to replace.


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Positive self-talk. Relaxation. These are skills that seem imperative to get through collegiate life, let alone life as a college athlete. This is exactly what all three men stressed: how important it is to translate these skills off the field, and how crucial it is for those not competing in Division I athletics to execute these mental skills as well.