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Brenna Campbell To Continue Academic And Volleyball Career At McDaniel College

(Signing images courtesy Clarion Area Athletics) Above: Brenna (seated) with her family (L-R): sister Addiwyn, father Jim, mother Shari; and sister Hadlee.

Clarion Area Volleyball standout Brenna Campbell recently signed a National Letter of Intent to continue her volleyball career at McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland.

The Green Terrors are an NCAA Division III team name. They are members of the Centennial Conference, which includes two other Maryland schools, Johns Hopkins and Washington College, as well as, Pennsylvania schools Bryn Mawr, Dickinson, Franklin & Marshall, Gettysburg, Haverford, Muhlenberg, Swarthmore and Ursinus.

The Terrors have made eight Centennial Conference Championship appearances (1998, 2006, 2007, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019), earning three Centennial Conference Championships (1994, 1999, 2015).

(McDaniel College Image)

McDaniel is also a member of the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) . They’ve made six Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) Tournament appearances (2000, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019) and seven NCAA Tounnament appearances (1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1989, 2015).

(McDaniel College image) McDaniel College Head Coach Jenn Feldman

The Terrors Head Coach is Jenn Feldman, who led the team to a 16-13 record in her first year at the helm in 2019. McDaniel made it all the way to the ECAC title game and the Centennial Conference semifinals.

The Centennial Conference canceled fall and winter sports competition for 2020-2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Coach Feldman spent nine seasons coaching at Johns Hopkins. She was part of six Centennial Conference Championship teams and was the American Volleyball Association (AVCA) Assistant Coach of the Year in 2017. Coach Feldman was named the Blue Jays interim head coach in 2018 and guided Johns Hopkins to a 22-8 record, the Centennial Conference title and an NCAA Tournament appearance, advancing to the second round.

As to her reasons for choosing McDaniel, Brenna said, “I chose McDaniel because of the challenging academics and the competitive volleyball program that is being built by my coach, Jenn. I really love the campus and think it is beautiful. The team atmosphere and their love for volleyball made me want to play with me. I am really excited to continue my career there.

“I plan to major in International Business and Sports Management, and also take some classes in Kinesiology.”

Brenna Campbell, in McDaniel gear, with National Letter of Intent

Brenna added, “The atmosphere I felt from the team and the coach was something close to my high school program. The coach has a vision of what she wants the program to build and I would love to help her build that. The players all seemed driven and in love with the sport.

“I think that this program fits me very well because of the competitive atmosphere and coaching.”

Brenna thanked a lot of people, who have helped her to get to this point in her journey. “There are so many people who have helped me get to where I am now. All my coaches, friends, teachers, and administration have put so much time into me and have helped me succeed. My parents and family are my biggest supporters and they push me to be my best. They take me to practices, lifts, tournaments, and so much more.

Brenna (Seated); Back (L-R) Athletic Director, Nancy Mills; assistant coach, Tracy Durish, head coach and mother, Shari Campbell, Superintendent, Joe Carrico.

“I also wouldn’t be anywhere without my amazing high school teammates. None of my accomplishments, awards, and commitment would be possible without them. They are hard working and passionate women who helped make me better in every aspect. They are such amazing people and I am so grateful for every single one of them.”

Brenna has been very involved in club volleyball, over the years. “I have played for Clover, my mom’s club since my 6th grade year. I then started to also play out of State College. I played for Relentless my sophomore year, and Central Penn my junior year. This club season I am playing out of Tyrone with a new team called Serendipity.”

Brenna was a member of Clarion Area teams that had great success throughout her career. The 2020 squad won the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) Class-A State Championship and was named to PrepVolleyball.com’s Region 2 Number Two Spot in Pennsylvania (Second only to Class-AAAA North Allegheny) in Final Rankings for Fall Teams.

(Above image by Bri Kirkland – Kirkland Photography) Lady Cats – 2020 PIAA State Class-A Champions

The Lady Cats were District Nine Class-A Champions in 2018, 2019 and 2020, and Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference Champions (KSAC) in each of those years. The 2018 Team made it to the PIAA State Class-A Semifinals and were number two in the final Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association (PVCA) State Class-A Rankings. During Brenna’s freshman year, in 2017, Clarion also made it to the PIAA State Class-A Semifinals. The Lady Cats were ranked number two in the final Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association (PVCA) State Class-A Rankings that season.

Brenna was named to the PVCA Single-A All-State Team in each of her four years, playing for the Lady Cats.

Some of Brenna’s personal awards include:

Senior Year: All-KSAC, PVCA All-District 9, PVCA District 9 Single A MVP, D9andD10.com Tri-MVP, PVCA All-State, American Volleyball Association (AVCA) All-Region 2 Team (Consists of players from All Classifications from Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey and Washington D.C.), Pennsylvania Player of the Week, October 18th, Academic All-State.

Junior Year: All-KSAC and KSAC MVP, PVCA All-District 9 Single-A Team, PVCA District 9 Single-A MVP, All-D9 Sports MVP, PVCA All-State, PVCA Academic All-State.

Sophomore Year: All-KSAC, Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association (PVCA) All-District 9 Single-A Team, PVCA District 9 Single-A MVP , PVCA All-State, and PrepVolleyball.com’s Top 79 Sophomores in the Nation.

Freshman Year: All-KSAC, All-District District 9, PVCA All-State. 

(Nate Girvan image) Brenna setting a teammate

Brenna had 689 assists, 275 points (51 aces), 106 digs and 15 kills, in 2020. Brenna went over the 3,000 career assists threshold this season.

Clarion Area head coach and Brenna’s mother, Shari Campbell shared, “Our family would like to thank all the teachers and staff at Clarion Area for their support of Brenna throughout her education and volleyball careers.

“I am excited to see what Brenna’s collegiate career holds for her.  She is such a hard working player on and off the court that she will undoubtedly meet with success. 

“Coach Jennifer Feldmann’s background and career is impressive.  It is a great opportunity for Brenna to be a part of the program that Coach Feldmann is building.  The team culture is something that as a coach, I appreciate. 

“It is an exciting time for Brenna and our family.  Brenna has left an impact on Clarion Volleyball that will influence many young female athletes, including her sisters, for years to come. 

“As her coach I appreciate the body of work that Brenna produced over the four years and the role model she is to these young players.  As a mom I couldn’t be more proud of the person she has become through the process.

“I can’t wait to be a fan in the stands watching Brenna play as she takes her game to the next level.”

Congratulations to Brenna and the entire Campbell family, Clarion Area School District, the Lady Cats and McDaniel College.

Brenna, you make us Clarion Proud!!!!

(Thanks to Nate Girvan, Clarion Area Athletics, McDaniel College and Bri Kirkland – Kirkland Photography for their images.)