As of Oct. 7, Fordham women’s volleyball star player Tatum Holderied is helping lead the team by ranking as the No. 1 blocker in the nation. The Rams are currently the No. 3 blocking team in the nation, previously No. 1 as of this past weekend, according to the NCAA rankings.

Halfway through their regular season, middle blocker Holderied, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’27, attributes her and the team’s national success to making blocking part of their team identity. Their assistant coach, Chris Sullivan, leads the charge.

“He puts a lot of time and effort into planning drills,” Holderied said. “He knows his players really well.”

Holderied earned the current title of No. 1 blocker in NCAA women’s volleyball by achieving an average of 2.12 blocks per set. Despite her veteran-level skillset, she did not begin her competitive volleyball career until she was a sophomore in high school.

“Whenever I would ask her to do something that’s outside her comfort zone or outside of her wheelhouse, she’ll just be like, ‘Okay, I’ll try it.’” Head Coach Ian Choi

Holderied’s personal success requires a lot of physical and mental preparation, she said. Holderied spends a lot of time “stretching” and, in order to mentally prepare for games, she tries to “center (herself) on the court” and always tries “to be present in the moment.” Holderied said she always tries to have fun and take advantage of the great opportunity that is participating in college athletics. Even though games can be stressful and a lot of pressure, she always tries to lead with competitive energy and a good mindset.

Head Coach Ian Choi remarked on how Holderied’s attitude is one of her strengths.

“Whenever I would ask her to do something that’s outside her comfort zone or outside of her wheelhouse, she’ll just be like, ‘Okay, I’ll try it,’” he said. “She doesn’t tie the fact that she might not be good at something to her motivation to do it and that is so crucial to getting better and progressing.”

Holderied continued to add to her pedigree in a match against Loyola University on Sept. 27 with a match-high 12 blocks.

Diving into the season with two high national rankings in the statistical category, the team maintains their positive and competitive mindsets, Holderied said. As a whole, they focus on the fundamentals during practice to strengthen both their offensive and defensive skills on the court.

“We do footwork at the beginning of every practice and things like that can sometimes feel a little tedious,” Holderied said. “We’re like ‘Oh, we’re doing this again.’ But then obviously when we get into the games, it just feels like second nature.”

The team has been one of the greatest factors in the success they have experienced so far this season. This is shown through their performance and dedication, but also their unwavering support for each other during the season. 

The players make teamwork and collaboration one of the most important elements of their team. They often check in with each other during practices, before, after and during games.

“Show up with everything you have to in every practice,” Holderied said. “Always showing up for your teammates.” 

“Before our games, we talk about our expectations (for the game), and they’re often more hinged on supporting each other.” Audrey Brown, GSBRH ’26

Every individual success Holderied turns out is in part because of the team as a whole. Outside hitter Audrey Brown, Gabelli School of Business at Rose Hill ’26, is a star in her own right, ranked the No. 35 blocker in the nation with an average of 1.35 blocks per set. She tallied 1,000 career kills in the first set against Dayton University on Oct. 3. As a team co-captain alongside outside hitter Zoe Talabong, FCRH ’26, Brown can attest to the diligence and effort the team puts in to keep their heads high and stay healthy.

“Before our games, we talk about our expectations (for the game), and they’re often more hinged on supporting each other,” Brown said.

In preparation for games, Brown distracts herself from nerves and anxiety through social interaction. Sometimes she will have dance parties with her teammates. They even have a shared playlist that they all add to, she said.

The team always checks in during and before games to make sure they do not put too much pressure on each other or cause any unnecessary stress, especially during high-stakes games. They try to ground themselves, not thinking about other factors other than their presence on the court, Brown said. 

“Be where your feet are” is the motto Brown plays by. During practices or games, the team solely focuses on the game and gives 100% of what they have. 

“When I’m in practice, I’m in practice,” Brown said.  

Coach Choi stated that each year, there are usually two captains chosen to create a balanced leadership where captains can work together and delegate. Instead of just delegating the team, the captains tend to do most of the work, Choi said. Co-captains Brown and Talabong work together to maintain a dependable and effective team.

“They lead complementary to each other,” Coach Choi said. “The way Zoe is perceived is that she’ll listen to you; the way Brown is perceived is that she’s more direct and she’ll tell you what needs to be done.” 

“You can do everything right and still fail. (It is) powerful in sports how true that is.” Head Coach Ian Choi

Choi has been leading the Rams to success for the past eight seasons. They achieved their best season under his leadership in 2023. After receiving his master’s of kinesiology, Choi became the assistant coach of the women’s volleyball team at Fordham. Soon after, he was promoted to head coach.

“(I) started coaching at any opportunity,” Choi said. 

Before he started coaching as a career, Choi would coach on the side. During his early coaching days in Austin, Texas, coaching junior teams, Coach Choi would begin his job at 6 a.m. and end at 10 p.m.

Coach Choi maintains the success of the team by valuing the skills of every individual player rather than just his starters. He believes that his job as the coach is to develop everyone’s athletic ability to the max. He wants to value each individual player and believes that your role does not limit you to who you are. 

“You can do everything right and still fail,” Choi said. “(It is) powerful in sports how true that is.”

Under Choi’s leadership this season, the team has achieved an overall record of 6-8, having played only 14 games so far this season. Part of Coach Choi’s strong leadership comes from his ability to support his players as not just athletes, but also Fordham students. 

“Family, academics and athletics” is the motto he coaches by. Coach Choi expresses how important it is to see his players “as a human being first instead of as (just) an athlete,” and even offers them academic opportunities outside of volleyball. He encourages and supports their academic success as much as their athletic success. 

The most exciting part of college athletics is the success. But with every college sports team comes the ability to handle your losses and grow from them. The players are always supporting each other after a bad loss. Holderied described how the team checks in with one another after a loss.

“The team embraces their mistakes because they are such great opportunities to learn from.” Tatum Holderied, FCRH ’27

“Recognizing the good things that people have done … Everyone is working so hard despite the loss,” Holderied said. “Making sure teammates are still feeling good about themselves.” 

The team makes it important to focus on the effort they put into the games and practices. They separate their good play from their mistakes, which allows them to work on their weaknesses and grow. 

“You can’t be amazing every single game. Every single person is going to have peaks and valleys and it is important to recognize that that is okay,” Brown said. “You cannot be perfect all the time.”

“The team embraces their mistakes because they are such great opportunities to learn from,” Holderied said.

The Rams have had an immense amount of success so far, even though it is only 14 games into the season. Their national ranking as a team has fluctuated in blocks per set. As of Oct. 7, they were demoted from No. 1 in the nation in blocks per set to No. 3, as a result of games played through Oct. 5. Utah Valley University replaced Fordham in the No. 1 spot and Auburn University now sits at no. 2. The margin is small, with Auburn just 0.03 blocks per set ahead of the Rams.

Next, the Rams will face off against the University of Rhode Island Rams on Oct. 8 in the Rose Hill Gym. Over the weekend, they will play two games against George Washington University, also at home.