Emily Wolfing ’05 was a dominant all-around athlete for the volleyball program at Washington and Lee.
As a middle and outside hitter, she was a four-year letterwinner and a two-year team captain for the Blue & White. She set a bevy of records and helped establish the Generals as one of the top volleyball programs in the South Region.
Wolfing finished her career as the program’s all-time leader in digs (1,557) and second in kills (1,490), while also leading W&L to a 125-25 (.833) overall record, a 42-0 conference mark, and four conference championships.
Wolfing's impact was immediate, as she played in 112 of the team’s 117 sets during her rookie season, finishing fourth on the team in kills (201) and third in digs (271) while helping the Generals to a 30-5 record and a trip to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
As a sophomore in 2002, she started all 40 matches and played in 129 of 135 sets for a team that set a school record for wins in going 32-8 overall. She finished second on the team in digs (389) and third in kills (373) while earning ODAC All-Tournament team laurels. W&L once again advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
As accomplished as her first two years proved to be, her final two were nothing short of historic. As a junior, she set a new program standard for digs (485) and produced the third-best kill total (462) in school history. She was named the ODAC Tournament MVP and helped lead the Generals to another school-record win total (35-4) and an appearance in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Following the season, she earned First Team All-ODAC, VaSID First Team All-State and Honorable Mention AVCA All-South Region honors. She was also recognized for her work in the classroom, taking home the ODAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award for volleyball and CoSIDA Academic All-District accolades.
Wolfing's senior season was remarkably similar to the year prior. She led the team in kills (454) and finished second in digs (412), as W&L finished 28-8 and again advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. She once again earned ODAC All-Tournament honors, and was selected First Team All-ODAC and VaSID First Team All-State. She repeated as the ODAC Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year, was an AVCA First Team All-South Region and Honorable Mention All-America selection. Additionally, Wolfing again earned CoSIDA Academic All-District laurels and received CoSIDA Third Team Academic All-America honors. She was also featured in the November 8 edition of Sports Illustrated in the “Faces in the Crowd” section.
Following the completion of her playing career, Wolfing was awarded the William D. McHenry Award as the top scholar-athlete at Washington and Lee.
