Standing 5-foot-11 inches, Seton Hall women’s volleyball outside hitter Perri Lucas ’24 doesn’t quite measure up vertically to many of the taller players on other Division I teams. So Lucas uses an explosive athletic ability, leaping up for highlight-reel spikes that show off her myriad talents.
Early in her career with the Pirates, Lucas learned that it wasn’t simply about power at the net — she needed to diversify her skills if she wanted to succeed.
“I got blocked a ton as a freshman, and it was frustrating, so I had to learn different shots,” says Lucas, a graduate student competing in her fifth season for the Pirates. “I can’t just bang the ball when someone’s 6 foot 3 inches and also jumping high blocking against me. I’ve had to learn to be more crafty with my offense. I learned how to hit around blocks and how to use the block and not be scared of a block in front of me. And then also I’ve had to learn how to speed up my offense.”
That work paid off for the Chicago native as she finished second in kills for the Pirates in both 2022 and 2023. “She’s so strong for how she’s only 5 foot 11 inches,” says Seton Hall coach Shannon Thompson. “For her to be able to hit the ball really hard and jump high, it’s such a nice tangible thing to have. And … the yo-yo game, as we call it, of moving the defense forward and backwards. She’s really done a good job of developing that volleyball IQ because her athleticism is through the roof.”
A biology major who also minored in chemistry and Africana Studies, Lucas plans on attending medical school and becoming a dermatologist. Her class load would be a full-time job for most students, and the life of a Division I athlete doesn’t leave a whole lot of free time.
But Lucas has managed to juggle the academics and athletics. “I was studying on buses, I was studying in the hotel, I was just always studying. I was never really not doing anything. And it was hard, but once you get in the flow of it and know that, OK, I’m going to study my note cards at this time and then look at the PowerPoint at this time and then take a nap at this time and then wake up and then do something else, it got easier.”
Lucas credits her dermatologist back home with inspiring her career choice. She had eczema since childhood and struggled with acne as well, “and I feel like especially once I got acne, my dermatologist really helped clear that up and get my confidence back. And so I wanted to be able to do that for other people.”
“I think I’ve grown into my leadership,” she says. “I’ve always been a lead-by-example type of person because I’m more of a naturally quiet person. But I feel like this year I’ve been using my voice a lot more, and especially with the younger girls, just telling them that it’s OK to make mistakes. You have to grow with it and just get comfortable.”
“She’s a very fun-loving person,” Thompson says. “She’s pretty quiet, but she does a good job of getting to know her teammates. She has a good heart and wants what’s best for everybody.”
Lucas fondly remembers a sophomore victory over Connecticut at home on Senior Night, calling it “probably one of the happiest moments I’ve felt playing volleyball.” Other memorable matches include collecting her career-best 23 kills in a triumph over Butler University in 2023 as well as the team’s grueling five-set victory over rival DePaul that same season, a match that saw Lucas slam 13 kills. “An exhilarating feeling,” she says of that win.
It’s the same feeling that Lucas and her powerful and crafty hitting have provided Pirates fans for five seasons.
Shawn Fury is an author based in New York City.
