Serena Gray
Biography
Personal: Her parents are Terence and Kristen Gray, and Serena Gray has an older sibling named Cameron. She majored in psychology and knows how to speak French and Spanish. She owns a Great Pyrenees named Koa and notes Otto Lacayo as a mentor who has made a difference in her career. She models her game after Amber Igiede and Chiaka Ogbogu. Growing up, Gray also competed in tennis, softball, and gymnastics. Her hobbies include painting, crocheting, and Wednesday night bingo.
Other Professional Experience: Serena competed for Salt Lake during the inaugural League One Volleyball season, where she totaled 62 kills, 17 digs, and 16 total blocks. She also played for Béziers Volley in France during the 2023-24 campaign.
International Experience: Serena Gray has been a member of the United States National Team since 2023. She led Team USA to a Silver medal at the 2024 Pan American Cup and a Gold medal at the 2023 NORCECA Pan American Cup Final Six. She also earned a Bronze medal at the 2023 Pan American Games and was a member of the 2025 Volleyball Nations League team in Week One. In 2016, Gray played on the United States Girls Youth National Team.
At Pittsburgh and Penn State: Serena Gray was a two-year letter-winner at Pittsburgh from 2021-22 after playing three seasons at Penn State. She appeared in 517 sets across 147 career matches, compiling 1,126 kills, 129 service aces, 518 total blocks, and 254 digs. She is a four-time AVCA All-America honoree and also garnered a pair of Volleyball Magazine All-America commendations. Gray was a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-America® selection and a two-time Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year, earning AVCA All-Region status three times. She secured a pair of NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team nods. In 2022, as a fifth-year player, Gray started all 34 matches for Pitt, guiding the Panthers to their second straight NCAA Semifinal appearance and an ACC title. She helped Pitt achieve its best season in over 30 years with a 31-4 record and led the team with 131 total blocks. She became the seventh player in team history to register 20 or more solo blocks in a single season during the modern scoring era and ranked third on the Panthers with 248 kills. Gray finished 18th in NCAA Division I with a .396 hitting percentage and became the first ACC player with 130 kills and a .400 hitting percentage over .400 in conference play. She put down a season-high 15 kills against Louisville and boasted a career-high nine total blocks against Hawai’i. Gray collected seven service aces in the NCAA Tournament and was the only middle blocker in the tournament with five or more aces. In 2021, she guided Pitt to its first NCAA Semifinal appearance in program history and was named ACC Volleyball Co-Scholar Athlete of the Year. She received AVCA All-America Honorable Mention status during her first season with the Panthers and became the second volleyball student-athlete in Pitt history to earn CoSIDA Academic All-America® First Team honors. Gray was named to the AVCA East Coast All-Region and All-ACC First Team and earned a spot on the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team. She led the Panthers and ranked 10th in the nation with a .417 hitting percentage, boasting 43 service aces, good for second in the ACC. She also guided Pitt with 132 total blocks after playing in all 34 matches and matched her career high with nine total blocks against Tennessee. She finished with 10 or more kills in five matches, including a 14-kill performance in the NCAA Tournament against Purdue, and hit .500 or better in 13 matches. In her final season at Penn State in 2020, Gray appeared in 56 sets over 15 matches, finishing with 117 kills, 44 total blocks, and 28 digs as a junior. She tallied 10 or more kills in four matches, including a pair of 13-kill outings against Ohio State and Indiana, and was second on the team with a .287 hitting percentage. In 2019, as a sophomore, Gray played in all 117 sets over 33 matches for the Nittany Lions, earning AVCA All-Northeast Region and All-America Honorable Mention laurels. She claimed a spot on the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team and ranked second on the team with 317 kills, averaging 2.71 kills per set. She also finished second on the squad with 34 service aces and 92 total blocks. She finished in double-digits in kills in 14 matches, including 18 kills on an impressive .708 hitting percentage in a three-set victory against Wichita State. She put down 21 kills across two NCAA Tournament matches and finished with five or more total blocks in five contests, including a season-high seven blocks on two occasions. As a true freshman in 2018, she claimed AVCA All-America and All-Northeast Region Honorable Mention plaudits, appearing in 95 sets over 30 matches. She tallied 171 kills with 119 total blocks and 13 service aces. She finished with double-digit kills in three matches, including 12 markers against Wisconsin, and put down five or more blocks in 14 matches, including seven rejections against Texas A&M.