Photo by: Maggie Bean
Meet the Volleyball Newcomers
11/24/2020 2:19:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Savannah Rennie, Carly Skrabak, Breyan Ashley and Carsen Murray ready to contribute to the Golden Eagles
Marquette women's volleyball lost one of its most successful classes ever this offseason. Seniors Allie Barber, Lauren Speckman and Madeline Mosher all graduated, and graduate senior Gwyn Jones completed her only year with the squad as well.
In order to make up for the high-profile losses, Marquette added four newcomers to the squad, one freshman in Carsen Murray and three transfers in sophomore Carly Skrabak, junior Breyan Ashley and graduate student Savannah Rennie.
Head coach Ryan Theis said each of the players brings a different skill set and talent level to the team, but as a whole, the group is certainly well-liked.
"They're really welcome additions," Theis said. "It's a pretty hard-working group who fit in extremely well with teammates very early on."
Check out an in-depth look at each of the new MUVB talents below.
#12 Carsen Murray, Freshman, Middle Blocker
Carsen Murray comes to Marquette volleyball as the program's only freshman this year. The middle blocker who hails from Lee's Summit, Missouri, instantly knew MU was the school for her during her visit last year.
"When I came to campus, I really loved how the campus was so close to downtown and it reminded me a lot of home," Murray said. "I saw how the school had a strong academic reputation and the volleyball program was really strong, so that really intrigued me."
For Theis, the early stages of Murray's MU volleyball career are all about development.
"She was a bit of an underdeveloped talent, she didn't get into high-level volleyball until much later in her career," Theis said. "The improvement she's made in the last month, week-by-week we're like, 'oh, Carsen just did that.' She's getting stronger, so it's great to see her improve."
Although Murray is the team's only freshman, senior outside hitter Hope Werch said she has seen the team's sophomores provide a guiding presence for Murray.
"She's really close with the sophomores who she lives with, and they've really taken her under their wings," Werch said. "We've really seen (Carsen) flourish. She's really funny and really hard-working, you can always count on her when you need a laugh."
While Murray's ultimate goal is to earn a spot in the starting lineup, she simply wants to be impactful in her first season.
"I just want to be someone that people can rely on," Murray said. "My goal is to just be a contributor and do my part with whatever the coaches need me to do or what the team needs me to do."
#14 Carly Skrabak, Sophomore, Defensive Specialist
Sophomore DS Carly Skrabak joins Marquette after spending her freshman season at Tennessee Tech of the Ohio Valley Conference.
"I just knew that it wasn't where I wanted to be, it wasn't a good fit," Skrabak said. "I really didn't like the school itself or the program, specifically the level (of play)."
For Theis, Skrabak checked all the boxes that Marquette was looking for in a transfer.
"We typically like to have four libero or DS type players," Theis said. "We were scouring (the transfer portal) and looking for one more player to add who had some experience, and Carly was a really good fit."
Coming to Marquette, the BIG EAST competition and city atmosphere were big draws for the sophomore DS.
"One of the biggest parts was I liked how the campus was in the city and the level of the program," Skrabak said. "(The level of competition) is pretty different in a great way. It's really competitive on both sides, so that's always really fun."
In practice so far, Theis has noticed her athleticism giving her a key advantage.
"In terms of fast-twitch and explosive, she is one of the best athletes we have," Theis said. "She can get to balls, she can move quick, she's a good learner and an extremely hard worker."
Werch agrees with Theis' sentiment, and said she can always count on Skrabak to go after a tough ball.
"Carly is a really, really hard worker," Werch said. "You know that she is going to go for every single ball. She's very hard on herself and wants everything to be perfect so that other people can work off of her touches."
As far as her goals while donning the blue and gold, Skrabak's aim is simple: win as much as possible.Â
"Our main goal is the NCAA Tournament and winning our conference championship every year," Skrabak said. "My goals are just to help out and be able to help lead the team to go far in the NCAA Tournament like they have in the past."
Graduate student Savannah Rennie is the oldest of the Marquette transfers, coming into MU after a full career at the University of California.
Rennie's health issues have been well-documented over the years, as she has undergone a liver transplant and knee surgery after a torn ACL, plus beaten cancer along the way.
But Rennie's multiple injuries gave her the opportunity to be on a college roster for not only a fifth year, but a sixth season.
"She was coming off an injury and wasn't 100 percent sure if she was going to play again," Theis said. "As she started the rehab process, she kind of got sparked into, 'maybe I should try to play one more year, maybe I can collect a master's degree and give it one more go.' She wanted a combination of things and we fit that."
In regard to her knee, Rennie said she is feeling better than ever despite a strange recovery period.
"I feel great, honestly. (My knee) feels really good," Rennie said. "Recovery was weird, I wasn't able to get into a PT clinic for two months. But I feel really strong. I haven't felt this strong in a while and I'm really excited."
As far as Rennie's impact on the floor, Theis said she is clearly immensely talented at the net.
"As soon as she was cleared to be going again health-wise, immediately we saw the impact of having a player with that experience," Theis said. "Her arm is incredibly live, she can score points in different zones along the net just based on pace. She can get to balls really quickly, she's very fast."
Even for her own teammates, Rennie's powerful arm is not easy to handle.
"She can hit the ball so hard, it's actually great," Werch said. "Everyone's a little terrified when we have to dig her balls. Just give her the ball and she's going to put it away."
In addition to Rennie's clear volleyball skills, both Theis and Werch mentioned her leadership and vocality as big assets the San Diego native brings to the team.
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Rennie's situation is different from the other newcomers because she only has one year to don the blue and gold Marquette uniform. In her lone season, Rennie has two main objectives: play her role, and win.
"I just want to be a consistent option for the team and make an impact," Rennie said. "I wanted to be a part of this program because it's a winning program, and they have a rich history of excellence. I think my style of play can add to it and I want to use this last year to put forth everything I have for this program because we're here to win."
#21 Breyan Ashley, Junior, Outside Hitter
Junior Breyan Ashley makes her way to Marquette after two seasons at St. Mary's of the West Coast Conference. Ashley was an all-WCC Honorable Mention a season ago, playing in every set of the year for the Gaels. But St. Mary's size and lack of focus on athletics forced Ashley to transfer, and she found a perfect fit at MU.
"St. Mary's just didn't have what I needed," Ashley said. "I always pictured playing for a school that was more volleyball-focused. Even though Marquette is a smaller school, the name of Marquette is out there and it's very athlete-oriented."
Due to COVID restrictions on gyms, Ashley's summer training was slowed, but Theis said he can more firmly see her skill level now.
"You can see her getting back up to speed over the course of the last month," Theis said. "She was a pretty good player at St. Mary's, she played a lot and served in a big role for them. You can see why now. She's done a great job at catching up."
For Ashley, the competition at Marquette has been one of the best parts of transferring.
"The level of competition is just out of this world," Ashley said. "The coaches give constructive and uplifting feedback. It's highly competitive, but it's a good level of competition."
Theis and Werch mentioned Ashley's beach volleyball background gives the Golden Eagles a different look at the net.
"She has a lot of beachy shots, and that's something that we don't really do a lot of," Werch said. "That definitely helps our hitters be a little more versatile because she's hitting these shots that we haven't seen in a while."
"(She's) a good ball controller, she likes the high, hard off-the-hands ball which I'm constantly trying to get our returning roster to use more," Theis said. "She isn't afraid to clip off the block, which is a pretty valuable skill that we can use in the gym for sure."
Personally, Ashley wants to use this season to reach her full potential on the court.
"I felt like I wasn't able to grow at St. Mary's. I think I lost myself for a little bit in those two years," Ashley said. "This year, I really want to buy into myself and make really big strides to reach my full potential as a player."
In order to make up for the high-profile losses, Marquette added four newcomers to the squad, one freshman in Carsen Murray and three transfers in sophomore Carly Skrabak, junior Breyan Ashley and graduate student Savannah Rennie.
Head coach Ryan Theis said each of the players brings a different skill set and talent level to the team, but as a whole, the group is certainly well-liked.
"They're really welcome additions," Theis said. "It's a pretty hard-working group who fit in extremely well with teammates very early on."
Check out an in-depth look at each of the new MUVB talents below.
#12 Carsen Murray, Freshman, Middle Blocker
Carsen Murray comes to Marquette volleyball as the program's only freshman this year. The middle blocker who hails from Lee's Summit, Missouri, instantly knew MU was the school for her during her visit last year.
"When I came to campus, I really loved how the campus was so close to downtown and it reminded me a lot of home," Murray said. "I saw how the school had a strong academic reputation and the volleyball program was really strong, so that really intrigued me."
For Theis, the early stages of Murray's MU volleyball career are all about development.
"She was a bit of an underdeveloped talent, she didn't get into high-level volleyball until much later in her career," Theis said. "The improvement she's made in the last month, week-by-week we're like, 'oh, Carsen just did that.' She's getting stronger, so it's great to see her improve."
Although Murray is the team's only freshman, senior outside hitter Hope Werch said she has seen the team's sophomores provide a guiding presence for Murray.
"She's really close with the sophomores who she lives with, and they've really taken her under their wings," Werch said. "We've really seen (Carsen) flourish. She's really funny and really hard-working, you can always count on her when you need a laugh."
While Murray's ultimate goal is to earn a spot in the starting lineup, she simply wants to be impactful in her first season.
"I just want to be someone that people can rely on," Murray said. "My goal is to just be a contributor and do my part with whatever the coaches need me to do or what the team needs me to do."
- Favorite professional athlete: Patrick Mahomes or Kobe Bryant
- Favorite sports memory: "My 15-year club volleyball team won our first qualifier, and I just remember the excitement and adrenaline rush of it all."
- Biggest motivation: Her older brother, C.J., an offensive lineman at Washburn University
- Ideal job: anything in sports marketing or sports management
- Favorite place in Milwaukee: Third Ward, specifically the Public Market
- Favorite food: sweet potatoes
- Favorite candy: KIT KAT
- Favorite holiday: Christmas
#14 Carly Skrabak, Sophomore, Defensive Specialist
Sophomore DS Carly Skrabak joins Marquette after spending her freshman season at Tennessee Tech of the Ohio Valley Conference.
"I just knew that it wasn't where I wanted to be, it wasn't a good fit," Skrabak said. "I really didn't like the school itself or the program, specifically the level (of play)."
For Theis, Skrabak checked all the boxes that Marquette was looking for in a transfer.
"We typically like to have four libero or DS type players," Theis said. "We were scouring (the transfer portal) and looking for one more player to add who had some experience, and Carly was a really good fit."
Coming to Marquette, the BIG EAST competition and city atmosphere were big draws for the sophomore DS.
"One of the biggest parts was I liked how the campus was in the city and the level of the program," Skrabak said. "(The level of competition) is pretty different in a great way. It's really competitive on both sides, so that's always really fun."
In practice so far, Theis has noticed her athleticism giving her a key advantage.
"In terms of fast-twitch and explosive, she is one of the best athletes we have," Theis said. "She can get to balls, she can move quick, she's a good learner and an extremely hard worker."
Werch agrees with Theis' sentiment, and said she can always count on Skrabak to go after a tough ball.
"Carly is a really, really hard worker," Werch said. "You know that she is going to go for every single ball. She's very hard on herself and wants everything to be perfect so that other people can work off of her touches."
As far as her goals while donning the blue and gold, Skrabak's aim is simple: win as much as possible.Â
"Our main goal is the NCAA Tournament and winning our conference championship every year," Skrabak said. "My goals are just to help out and be able to help lead the team to go far in the NCAA Tournament like they have in the past."
- Favorite sports memory: "Back when I played club in Tennessee, my first year at this new club, we went pretty far in the AAU national tournament and that was really exciting because we had worked all year and stayed in a house with our team."
- Biggest motivation: "Being really good at whatever I do."
- Ideal job: "Something where I can help people, whether that's coaching or something else, I just want to help people."
- Favorite place in Milwaukee: downtown
- Favorite place to eat on campus: Sobelman'sÂ
- Favorite guilty pleasure food: dark chocolate
- Favorite holiday: Christmas
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Graduate student Savannah Rennie is the oldest of the Marquette transfers, coming into MU after a full career at the University of California.
Rennie's health issues have been well-documented over the years, as she has undergone a liver transplant and knee surgery after a torn ACL, plus beaten cancer along the way.
But Rennie's multiple injuries gave her the opportunity to be on a college roster for not only a fifth year, but a sixth season.
"She was coming off an injury and wasn't 100 percent sure if she was going to play again," Theis said. "As she started the rehab process, she kind of got sparked into, 'maybe I should try to play one more year, maybe I can collect a master's degree and give it one more go.' She wanted a combination of things and we fit that."
In regard to her knee, Rennie said she is feeling better than ever despite a strange recovery period.
"I feel great, honestly. (My knee) feels really good," Rennie said. "Recovery was weird, I wasn't able to get into a PT clinic for two months. But I feel really strong. I haven't felt this strong in a while and I'm really excited."
As far as Rennie's impact on the floor, Theis said she is clearly immensely talented at the net.
"As soon as she was cleared to be going again health-wise, immediately we saw the impact of having a player with that experience," Theis said. "Her arm is incredibly live, she can score points in different zones along the net just based on pace. She can get to balls really quickly, she's very fast."
Even for her own teammates, Rennie's powerful arm is not easy to handle.
"She can hit the ball so hard, it's actually great," Werch said. "Everyone's a little terrified when we have to dig her balls. Just give her the ball and she's going to put it away."
In addition to Rennie's clear volleyball skills, both Theis and Werch mentioned her leadership and vocality as big assets the San Diego native brings to the team.
Â
Rennie's situation is different from the other newcomers because she only has one year to don the blue and gold Marquette uniform. In her lone season, Rennie has two main objectives: play her role, and win.
"I just want to be a consistent option for the team and make an impact," Rennie said. "I wanted to be a part of this program because it's a winning program, and they have a rich history of excellence. I think my style of play can add to it and I want to use this last year to put forth everything I have for this program because we're here to win."
- Favorite professional athlete: Serena Williams or her older brother, Luc, a professional baseball player in the Mets minor league system
- Favorite sports memory: First kill after liver transplant
- Biggest motivation: "Proving myself wrong and overcoming obstacles that I've been put against."
- Ideal job: collegiate volleyball coach
- Favorite place in Milwaukee: Third Ward or Bradford Beach
- Favorite guilty pleasure food: anything chocolate
- Favorite candy: peanut M&Ms
- Favorite holiday: "Christmas, I get a Nutcracker every year, so I have a collection of Nutcrackers at my mom's house."
#21 Breyan Ashley, Junior, Outside Hitter
Junior Breyan Ashley makes her way to Marquette after two seasons at St. Mary's of the West Coast Conference. Ashley was an all-WCC Honorable Mention a season ago, playing in every set of the year for the Gaels. But St. Mary's size and lack of focus on athletics forced Ashley to transfer, and she found a perfect fit at MU.
"St. Mary's just didn't have what I needed," Ashley said. "I always pictured playing for a school that was more volleyball-focused. Even though Marquette is a smaller school, the name of Marquette is out there and it's very athlete-oriented."
Due to COVID restrictions on gyms, Ashley's summer training was slowed, but Theis said he can more firmly see her skill level now.
"You can see her getting back up to speed over the course of the last month," Theis said. "She was a pretty good player at St. Mary's, she played a lot and served in a big role for them. You can see why now. She's done a great job at catching up."
For Ashley, the competition at Marquette has been one of the best parts of transferring.
"The level of competition is just out of this world," Ashley said. "The coaches give constructive and uplifting feedback. It's highly competitive, but it's a good level of competition."
Theis and Werch mentioned Ashley's beach volleyball background gives the Golden Eagles a different look at the net.
"She has a lot of beachy shots, and that's something that we don't really do a lot of," Werch said. "That definitely helps our hitters be a little more versatile because she's hitting these shots that we haven't seen in a while."
"(She's) a good ball controller, she likes the high, hard off-the-hands ball which I'm constantly trying to get our returning roster to use more," Theis said. "She isn't afraid to clip off the block, which is a pretty valuable skill that we can use in the gym for sure."
Personally, Ashley wants to use this season to reach her full potential on the court.
"I felt like I wasn't able to grow at St. Mary's. I think I lost myself for a little bit in those two years," Ashley said. "This year, I really want to buy into myself and make really big strides to reach my full potential as a player."
- Favorite professional athlete: Older brother, Brandon, a former basketball player at the University of Arizona who is now in the G League
- Favorite sports memory: "On Saturday's at St. Mary's, we'd play tournament-style beach volleyball between our team, and it was just so much fun."
- Biggest motivation: "Being a good role model for my little sister and making my mom and grandma proud."
- Ideal job: Nurse
- Favorite place in Milwaukee: Third Ward, specifically the Public Market
- Favorite guilty pleasure food: any sour candy
- Favorite candy: Sour Punch Straws
- Favorite holiday: Christmas
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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