FREDRICKSBURG, Va. (EYT/D9) — Brenna Campbell thought she had it all figured out.
As a four-time Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association all-state selection as a setter, the Clarion graduate was looking forward to continuing her stellar career at McDaniel College in Westminster, Md.
It didn’t take Campbell long this fall, however, to experience an unsettling sinking feeling in her chest. A belief overwhelmed her that, at first, she tried to deny, but eventually overpowered her.
She was not at the right place.
Campbell played well for the the Green Terror. She started all 24 matches and played in all 87 sets. She led the team in assists with 737 — the next closest had 20 — and also had 160 digs.
But she wasn’t happy.
She was chasing something she realized she couldn’t get at McDaniel. So, Campbell made the decision to leave, transferring to the University of Mary Washington at the beginning of the spring semester.
“I had a great opportunity at McDaniel to be a starting setter as a freshman,” Campbell said. “I got great experience, but at the end of the day, I wanted to be pushed more. I felt like the competitiveness wasn’t there. I just wanted something that fit me a lot better, fit my personality and drive and determination as a person and as an athlete.”
Campbell, after all, came from a program run by her mother, Shari Campbell, that has set the volleyball bar very high.
Clarion is a state power in the sport and won its second consecutive PIAA Class A title last fall. Brenna Campbell was a senior on the team that won the first of those back-to-back championships in 2020 and grew up around the program, which has become the stuff of legends.
She craved that kind of atmosphere in college and admitted she was surprised when it wasn’t there at McDaniel.
“Coming from my high school program, I wanted something that was similar to that,” Campbell said. “About halfway through the season, I was like, ‘I can’t play here for the next three years.’
“Our high school program performed at such an elite level and set such an elite standard,” Campbell added. “We hold ourselves so accountable in everything we do, from lifting to practices — everything. If you ask players who have played for my mom years ago and went on to play in college, it’s never the same. Some get close, but it’s not the same. That’s absolutely insane.”
Playing in a program that demanded the best, Campbell delivered it.
She recorded a staggering 3,108 assists in her career. She also piled up 627 digs and 209 service aces.
Campbell said one of the main reasons why she performed so well was being in a program that had such high standards and expected so much of the players within it.
Campbell thinks she has found something close at Mary Washington.
“I was looking at a bunch of schools, but mainly Mary Washington stuck out,” Campbell said. “First of all, the campus is beautiful. I love the campus. Education-wise, it was the best option. I met the girls on the team and the coaches and I got the best vibes from them. I got really excited.”
Campbell is already on campus, taking classes and working out with the team.
“We’ve started our conditioning and lifting training,” she said. “The facilities are amazing. The strength and conditioning coaches are amazing. It’s so awesome to be able to play with these girls. It’s so much fun to be here.”
Campbell said she has a different feeling about Mary Washington than she had at McDaniel.
Campbell is relieved by that.
“I found a place that I love,” Campbell said.
