It’s difficult for some college athletes to say they’re achieving exactly what they hoped for at their dream schools — but Iowa volleyball third-year libero Amanda Darling is doing just that.
Darling’s journey to the Hawkeyes has been a long time coming, dating back years before her destination in Iowa City.
Growing up in Oswego, Illinois, she had used volleyball as a bonding tactic to spend time with the other girls in her neighborhood, but this developed into a deeper love for the game as she started to play in a local recreational league as well as for a travel club at 11 years old.
Darling played volleyball at Oswego High School, where she was named a three-time all-conference nominee and set the school record for digs in a match with 27 in just two sets.
She gave high praise to her coaches upon reminiscing about her high school days.
“It was a very big deal — it was super cool to hit that record,” Darling said. “And the coaches always believed in me. They said they would do anything it takes to get me to the next level, so it was super nice to have their support.”
After graduating in 2020, Darling had limited options on where she could play collegiate volleyball.
She opted to attend Niagara University in New York as she thought it would be best to go to a big city away from home. She had two great seasons there — most notably her second-year campaign in which she ranked fifth in the NCAA with 5.55 digs per set.
After her two years at Niagara, though, Darling missed her family and wanted to move somewhere closer to home.
She said she wrote letters to her three dream schools, Iowa being one of them. After sending her highlight clip and taking a phone call with Hawkeye volleyball head coach Jim Barnes, she was offered a position on the team.
“Amanda’s one heck of a person, and her family are incredible people,” Barnes said. “The first thing that popped [out to me about her] was that she’s an incredible defender … This is one of the hardest-working kids, just really smart in the classroom and just a great student athlete.”
In attending the University of Iowa, the the student-athlete is studying secondary education to pursue her dream of becoming of a high school English teacher.
“I knew I wanted to be a teacher my whole entire life,” Darling said. “I just have this heart to help people. I want to see people grow up and succeed, and [I want to] be a safe spot. There’s no better fit for that than education.”
Darling appreciates her time at Niagara but is grateful to now be a part of the Iowa volleyball program — a collective she calls “a sisterhood.”
“Everyone believes in you, and they want what’s best for you no matter what,” Darling said. “That’s probably the coolest thing to see is everyone’s backing me up, and then I’m backing everyone else up. We just have this sisterhood culture, and I just love that.”
Darling is listed as a redshirt for the 2023-24 season as she tore two ligaments in her ankle the last day of the preseason. She said she looks forward to returning to a fully healthy status so she can help this team amid a program rebuild in progress.