IU volleyball recruit Emily Fitzner took to Twitter on Tuesday to verbally commit to IU, but the official National Letter of Intent was signed Thursday, according to an IU Athletics press release.
Fitzner is an AVCA First Team Under Armour All-American from Torrey Pines High School in San Diego, California.
“It’s a special day for the Indiana Volleyball program,” IU Coach Steve Aird said in the release. “Emily is a First Team All-American and an elite talent. She comes from a very athletic and hard-working family that values competition at the highest level.”
Emily Fitzner’s older brother, Evan Fitzner, is a graduate transfer on the IU men’s basketball team.
She is also a member of the USA Women’s Junior A National Training Team.
“I choose IU because I want to help build a program and compete to win a Big Ten conference title,” Emily Fitzner said in the release.
The 6-foot setter is entering her final week of her school’s regular season with 841 kills, 159 blocks and 1,263 assists in her career.
“Emily is one of our leaders and a really hard-working, high level kid who is able to compete and have fun simultaneously,” Fitzner’s high school coach Brennan Dean said in the release. “She has the ability to let go of points when things don’t go right and always finds joy in playing.”
IU freshman setter Abigail Westenhofer came to IU after being part of the Under Armour All-American second team. She has quickly been pushed into frequent playing time by Aird, which is something he plans to do with Emily Fitzner in her freshman season as well.
“We are going to ask and expect a lot from Emily as soon as she arrives on campus, and we know that is what attracted her to this program,” Aird said in the release. “I feel there is a rightful place for Indiana Volleyball among the countries (sic) elite, and adding a student-athlete with Emily’s talent and passion to the roster is a giant step in that direction.”
