The Ultimate Team Sport: Erin Grace ’29 on Volleyball and Exercise Science
Erin Grace prepares to leap into the air during a Chatham University women’s volleyball game last year. (Jeanine Leech)
This is part of a series of stories highlighting the impact of donors ahead of Chatham University Day of Giving on April 22, 2026.
Erin Grace ’29 loves playing volleyball because, she said, it’s the one of the most team-oriented sports out there.
“You can’t do your job at all unless people around you are doing their job properly,” said Grace, who plays on the women’s volleyball team at Chatham University.
“I’ve been blessed with great teammates that cooperate with each other and take instruction well.”
Grace grew up in Greensburg, PA, and has played volleyball since she was a kid, starting in grade school and getting more serious about the sport as she got into middle and high school.
“It started getting more competitive, and I realized how technical everything was,” Grace said. “And it’s pretty popular in the Pittsburgh area. There’s a lot of good clubs out here.”
This past fall, she started school at Chatham, where she plays middle hitter as well as right and left pins.
“We have really great team chemistry,” Grace said of the team. “There’s not any cliques. I can talk to any one of my teammates for hours, and it’s awesome that we’ve been brought together by the sport. We’re also really competitive.”
One of the most memorable games Grace has played so far happened during Chatham’s 2025 Homecoming and Alumni Reunion Weekend. The women’s volleyball game against the Allegheny College Gators was a major part of the programming, with a pre-game tailgate and a packed house in the Athletic and Fitness Center.
(Jeanine Leech)
“Our Homecoming game was great,” she said. “I saw so many alumni there. It was a full, packed gym, which was so awesome to see. It made us feel very supported. This used to be a women’s college, so I thought it was awesome that a women’s team played the Homecoming game.”
She said her team’s head coach, Joe Bortak, is adamant about players doing well in class. “I think having a rigorous schedule between athletics and academics keeps me on track,” Grace said. “We’re student athletes; the student comes before the athlete. At the end of the day, we’re here to learn.”
Bortak, who’s coached the women’s volleyball team for eight seasons now, said the team takes pride in being a close-knit group. “We want to recruit good people who are good students that just happen to be good at volleyball,” Bortak said.
Since Bortak joined the program, he’s seen it grow in scope and talent. Donations are key to that growth. “Day of Giving allows us to go on a couple more trips,” he said. “It makes sure we get Elite coach busses, hotel rooms, athletic trainers’ insurance premiums— it helps us get better quality gear and training equipment.”
That includes the acquisition of a serving machine—like a pitching machine for volleyball—for the men’s and women’s team in recent years.
Grace, who’s in her second term at Chatham, majors in exercise science, something she first became interested in when a knee injury in high school led her to start physical rehabilitation.
When she began working in the gym where she trained, her boss encouraged her to read up on scientific literature in addition to her daily tasks, she started to learn even more.
“It made me want to go into physical therapy and explore the recovery side of sports more than just the lifting side,” Grace said. Now, her courses have her diving headfirst into all sorts of academic articles.
She said she intends to pursue a master’s program after graduation and eventually obtain a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree.
Support from generous donors is what makes experiences like this possible for Chatham students.
Consider donating during Chatham University’s annual Day of Giving on April 22, 2026. Visit givecampus.com to learn more.