Big summer for Pine-Richland volleyball ace includes Pitt commitment, spot on national team

By: Jerin Steele
Sunday, June 30, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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The month of June has been pretty exciting for Isabelle Hoppe.

Not only did she verbally commit to Pitt, but she also learned she’ll be a member of the USA Volleyball U19 national team.

Hoppe, who will be a junior at Pine-Richland and one of the top women’s volleyball recruits in her class, committed to Pitt on June 18.

She attended college volleyball camps all over the country, but in the end, the perfect choice was the closest one to home.

“I’ve been to around six other colleges for camps over the last couple years, even some on the west coast, and they’re all amazing programs, but Pitt had so much to offer close to home that it was an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up,” Hoppe said. “The mix of academics and athletics is super important to me. They offer high level volleyball and high level academics. Being so close to home, I’ve been able to watch the program grow. Talking to the coaches, they value culture so much, and that’s something I was looking for in my process. Everything fell together and it just felt right.”

Pitt has blossomed into one of the top NCAA Division I programs in the country, having made three consecutive Final Four appearances. With Hoppe’s commitment, the Panthers are getting the top setter and seventh-ranked recruit in the 2026 class by Prepvolleyball.com.

The announcement that Hoppe had made the U.S. Girls U19 national team came four days prior to Hoppe’s commitment to Pitt.

Hoppe was one of 20 girls invited to try out at a training session in Anaheim in early June and part of the final 12 that made the traveling roster.

The U19 team will train together in Colorado Springs on July 8-11 before travelling to Honduras to compete in the NORCECA Girls U19 Continental Championship on July 12-20.

“We’re going there to try to qualify for the World Championships,” Hoppe said. “We’re going to play against a bunch of different countries, so that will be a cool experience.”

Hoppe will eventually share an alma mater with her current coach at Pine-Richland, Angela Seman, who was a libero at Pitt from 2014-18 after a successful high school career at Seneca Valley.

“I told her the day after I decided and she was so excited,” Hoppe said. “She gave me a big hug. I think she was pulling for (Pitt) a little bit. Telling her was really exciting.”

As a freshman, Hoppe helped Pine-Richland win its first WPIAL girls volleyball title and reach the state semifinals.

Last year, she played a major role in the Rams reaching the WPIAL semifinals.

Hoppe has been named to the Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association Class 4A All-State team each of the last two years.

Jerin Steele is a freelance writer

Tags: Pine-Richland