In 2018, when then-Penn State Athletic Director M. Grace Calhoun hired Katie Schumacher-Cawley as the team’s assistant head coach, she had already spent a season as Kenneth L. Gross’s head coach. “Her head coaching experience and successful playing career make her the right fit to lead our program,” said Grace Calhoun. Yet, at that moment, maybe even she didn’t know just how true that statement would become.

Fast-forward to 2024, and Schumacher-Cawley isn’t just the head coach of the program, but a record-setting one. Last December, the 45-year-old created NCAA volleyball and Penn State history, becoming the first female head coach to win the national title. Yet, what truly inspired the volleyball world was that Schumacher-Cawley did it while battling cancer. And she’s ready to make history again, following in the footsteps of legendary basketball coach Dawn Staley.

Last year, Staley became the first individual female coach to win the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance at the ESPY since Kay Yow in 2007. Now, barely a year later, Katie Schumacher-Cawley will become the first Penn State coach to earn the special honor on July 16. “Someone call @merriamwebster – because we have a new definition of perseverance,” The V Foundation for Cancer Research wrote after ESPN announced it on June 30.

“I’m speechless. I’m totally honored,” the 45-year-old told the V Foundation. “What an honor it is to be a part of this organization, and to be a part of that is just really special. Thank you,” added Schumacher-Cawley. And although it is record-breaking, she won’t be alone on that stage.

Besides Katie Schumacher-Cawley, former Cincinnati Royals star Oscar Robertson will be among the special honorees. ESPN announced that Robertson will receive the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage for his efforts to establish free agency in the NBA. Additionally, two Los Angeles-area first responders have been selected as recipients of the Pat Tillman Award for Service at the upcoming ESPY Awards.

David Walters, a member of the Los Angeles Fire Department, and Erin Regan, with Los Angeles County Fire, are both being honored for their response to the devastating Palisades and Eaton fires in January this year.

On the other hand, Katie Schumacher-Cawley winning the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance isn’t surprising. Stanley and Schumacher-Cawley have something else in common other than the prestigious award.

Katie Schumacher-Cawley and Dawn Staley share a connection deeper

The Penn State volleyball head coach clarified that she had no intention of sitting on the sidelines. “I’m approaching this with strength, determination, and an unwavering sense of hope,” she wrote on October 17, 2024. And she carried that mindset throughout the season, as she kept showing up during practice while undergoing treatment.

“She hasn’t missed a practice all year, and that makes it even more incredible to me that she’s been able to do that,” said rival and then-Louisville coach Dani Busboom-Kelly, who was on the other side of that historic 2024 NCAA final. Meanwhile, Dawn Staley cheered on the all-female-led NCAA final clash.

“Dani Busboom-Kelly @louisvillevb Katie Schumacher-Cawley @pennstatevball you make us all proud!” Staley wrote on social media. Yet, the connection runs even deeper because Dawn Staley has been on the front lines of raising cancer awareness. You see, the South Carolina women’s basketball coach’s sister, Tracey Underwood, got diagnosed with cancer.

That’s when Staley jumped into action, helping her sister get the life-saving bone marrow transfer. However, she didn’t stop there. Dawn Staley partnered with the National Marrow Donor Program to assist potential donors in signing up, advocated for patient care, and cancer research. So Katie Schumacher-Cawley earning the Jimmy V Award is simply a gesture to honor the two trailblazing women’s sports coaches persevering against cancer in their own way.