CAREER
Career: Became the eighth Nittany Lion to win EIVA Newcomer/Freshman of the Year (2021)...Named second-team All-EIVA (2021)...Earned two Academic All-Big Ten awards.
Season: 2022: Rostered with USA Volleyball Men’s Beach Collegiate National Team in the national team development program with teammate Will Bantle.
2023 • JUNIOR SEASON
Awards: Earned a spot on the Academic All-Big Ten Team.
Season: Played in 33 sets over 13 matches, including five as a starter...Hit .238 with 77 kills (2.33/set), 32 digs (0.97/set), 15 blocks (0.45/set) and five aces...Had three matches with double-digit kills, including a season-high 13 in addition to six digs in a four-set win over Central State (1/6).
vs. Central State (1/6): Totaled a season-high 13 kills on .333 hitting in addition to six digs in a four-set win. at No. 13 Ohio State (1/7): Contributed nine kills in a four-set win. Daemen (1/13): Hit .471 with 10 kills and four blocks. at No. 6 UC Irvine (3/5): Chipped in with five kills, five digs and four blocks in a five-set win. vs. Purdue Fort Wayne (3/11): Hit .500 with 10 kills, five digs and two aces.
2022 • SOPHOMORE SEASON
Awards: Earned a spot on the Academic All-Big Ten Team.
Season: Provided steady offensive and defensive play in 25 matches played with 23 starts as outside hitter…Finished fifth on team with 118 kills…Effective from service line with 15 aces…Rock solid on serve-receive with a .952 SR% (298-313)…Tallied 95 digs and 24 blocks defensively.
George Mason (2/5): Aced a career-high five serves in three-set win…Served a 5-0 run late in third set to clinch win. at Harvard (2/11): Hit team-best .545 with seven kills. Saint Francis (2/19): Tallied season-high 11 kills along with three digs. vs. Harvard (3/25): Hit .643 with ten kills, four digs, and two blocks. at No. 13 Ohio State (3/8): Had effective overall match with eight kills, .412 hitting percentage, six digs, and 13-13 on serve-receive in 3-0 win. Harvard (3/25): Ripped 10 kills at season-high .643 rate in important late-season EIVA win over Crimson. Princeton (4/22): Had season-high 10 digs to go with nine kills in EIVA semifinals.
2021 • FRESHMAN SEASON
Awards: Selected EIVA Freshman of the Year...Named to All-EIVA Second Team...Chosen Off the Block National Freshman of the Week (3/22)...Earned EIVA Offensive Player of the Week honors (2/22).
Season: Emerged as a consistent point scorer in 17 matches, including 15-straight starts (1/20-3/20)...Ranked third on team with 112 kills...Had four matches with double-digit kills and 10 with at least five kills...Hit .294 on 231 attempts...Recorded 62 digs and a .924 serve-receive percentage.
Rankings: Topped all EIVA freshman at 2.20 kills per set...Ranked second among conference rookies with 112 kills.
at No. 14 Ohio State (1/22-23): Made collegiate debut with three kills in game one...Scored four kills in game two in first career start. No. 13 Ohio State (1/19): Posted seven kills with .545 hitting percentage in three-set win. Saint Francis (2/4): Reached double-digit kills with 10, including match-clinching point, to go with five digs in five-set win. NJIT (2/13): Ripped nine kills at .400 clip with six digs in four-set win. at Sacred Heart (2/19-20): Totaled 25 kills at efficient .452 rate to power two road wins...Set season high with 17 kills to pair with eight digs in game two...Named EIVA Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts. at No. 11 NJIT (3/19-20): Had another impactful 25-kill weekend in back-to-back road sweeps...Hit .370 with 15 kills in the first match including five kills in clinching third set...Added 10 kills with only one error in game two win...Named Off the Block National Rookie of the Week for his efforts.
BEFORE PENN STATE
Chosen team captain all four years for Cardinal Gibbons High School…Helped Chiefs to undefeated state championship run at 28-0 in 2018…Selected to Miami Dade and Broward First Team All-County team three times (2017-19)…Chosen Cardinal Gibbons Player of the Year junior year (2019)…Senior season canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic…Selected to the A1 Division of USA Volleyball High Performance team in 2019 with current Nittany Lion teammate Ian Argento…Won silver medal with Team USA Red at the 2019 USAV High Performance Championships…Named to USAV High Performance Tournament All-America Team…Named AAU Nationals All-American twice with Ocean Bay Volleyball Club (2018-19).
PERSONAL
Parents are Kathy and Steve Valenzi…Steve graduated from Penn State in 1985…Has one brother, Stephen, and one sister, Rachel…Majoring in supply chain and information systems.