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Last Friday, St. Charles North’s Haley Burgdorf took a visit to Penn State, which will be her college home, to watch a Big Ten match between the Nittany Lions and Michigan State.

As she took in the three-game sweep and hung out with her future teammates, one thing kept popping into her head.

“I was talking to all the girls and I was like, ‘I literally can’t wait to get there,’” Burgdorf said.

The 2025 Beacon-News/Courier-News Girls Volleyball Player of the Year doesn’t have to wait much longer. Burgdorf, a three-time player of the year, leaves for Happy Valley on Jan. 8.

For players of her caliber — Burgdorf, ranked 29th nationally, is the top recruit from Illinois for the 2025 class — it’s not uncommon to graduate early and get a head st

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