Making an impact on a Div. I sports team is not easy, especially when you are a freshman.

However, the Penn State women's volleyball freshmen trio of setter Sam Tortorello, outside hitter Kaleena Walters and outside hitter Amy Morris seem to be making an impact early.

"They all fit in very well," Penn State women's volleyball assistant coach Julie Miller said. "They have adapted to the level of play and the intensity of practice, and the adjustment to college life."

You can see how the freshmen are making an impact as the No. 9 Nittany Lions (14-1, 4-0 Big Ten) battle Michigan (9-5, 3-1) tonight at 7 and No. 18 Michigan State (11-3, 3-1) tomorrow night at 7:30 in Rec Hall.

Tortorello, who hails from Shorewood, Ill., is currently a starter and has made the greatest impact thus far, but that can be expected concerning the circumstances surrounding her.

"We expected Sam, more so than the others, to make a really big impact because we knew she would come in and battle with Jessica Hayden for the starting job, right away," Miller said.

"I wanted to come in and help the team in whatever way I could," Tortorello said.

That is just what she has done.

In playing 45 games, Tortorello is helping out her cause by leading the team in sets with 523 assists, 11.62 assists per game.

"Sam may be the best freshman setter in the country," Penn State women's volleyball coach Russ Rose said.

This reputation may be in part due to her having such a strong family background in volleyball with both her older sisters Liz (Wisconsin) and Katie (Boston College) playing at the collegiate level.

Since Sam lives in Chicago and her older sister Liz attended Wisconsin, she wanted to play volleyball in the Big Ten, Miller said.

"The coaches are a big impact of why I came here and when I met the team I got a long with every single one of them," Tortorello said. "I knew this was the place for me."

Although Tortorello is making her mark at Penn State, Walters (Mt. Lebanon) is establishing herself as well.

Walters has made herself known by participating in 45 games this year.

"Kaleena has a very high volleyball IQ and is a very competitive person," Rose said.

Her tremendous skill level and her "volleyball IQ" is what brought her from her high school volleyball program to Penn State's.

"She was somebody we targeted really early simply because she was one of the best players in Pennsylvania and she had all the skills," Miller said. "She was an intense competitor from the beginning and we knew she would be able to handle the pressure and step in as a freshman."

Walters is doing just what the coaches expected, making a positive impact on the team.

"I want to keep making an impact and keep getting better as the year goes on," she said. "There are a lot of things that I need to do to get better so I can keep making a better impact, like improving on my consistency."

To make herself better, Walters looks to senior outside hitter Mishka Levy.

"I look up to Mishka the most because she has been on the National Championship team, so she knows how hard you have to work," Walters said.

Walters shows her maturity by following the lead of such a high quality player and this, plus all of her own skills, will certainly lead her to bigger and better things in the near future.

Walters is not the only one that looks up to Levy. Amy Morris (Michigan City, Ind.) also considers her to be her role model on the team.

"She [Levy] comes up to you and helps you out a lot," Morris said.

Morris, who made several appearances earlier in the season, has dropped off some lately. She has still contributed to 35 games thus far and is looking to get back into the action.

"I am hoping to get back in and start playing a lot more," Morris said.

She can accomplish this because of her skill level and her high expectations.

"I would like to be an All-American because that is why everyone comes to big schools for that and a national championship," Morris said.

The idea of winning a national championship is commonplace with all three freshmen, but that can be expected with such talented, hard-working young women who have their sites at the top and expect nothing less.

"This freshman class is one of the better classes in the country because they have allowed us to be successful in the Big Ten already," Miller said.

Rose said the other two freshmen on the team, setter Emily Guman (Allentown) and middle hitter Kim Holm (St. Charles, Ill.) are being redshirted on what the coaches think their best abilities are, so they can make an impact on the team next year.

Even though the trio of Tortorello, Walters and Morris is making an impact now, keep your eyes open to see what the future has in store for these three young but talented volleyball players.