Appreciating Every Opportunity and Moment

As if a collegiate sport wasn't enough of a commitment, sophomore Piper Stevens is also in the Dartmouth Chamber Orchestra and a women's student-athlete bible study.

In the process, Stevens is taking advantage of every day of good health, while cherishing every moment of her Dartmouth experience.

"My sister has a chronic illness and I had Gastroparesis, stomach paralysis disease, when I was younger," said Stevens. "It took us both out of our sports – for her an extended period of time and for me briefly – and were pretty debilitating. It made me recognize that you can be the hardest worker and achieve all your goals, but as soon as your health goes out the window, it's all gone and possibly not recoverable."

Stevens takes motivation from that realization.

"As someone who is now currently healthy and has been given this wonderful opportunity to go to school and play volleyball here, it feels like a disservice to my sister, and my former self, to give anything but my best," said Stevens. "She would kill to go here and have this experience. I was the one blessed enough to receive it.

"That drives me to be my best self every day, and every time I step into the gym and don't have 100 percent attitude, it's a disservice to her."

"Piper is a source of inspiration to all of us, and for me in particular, understanding what she has had to go through with her health and her sister's health, yet never let one day go by without a spark," said Dartmouth head volleyball coach Gilad Doran. "Her positivity, and looking for a spark in each day, is a constant reminder to us all on how fortunate we all are and have a greater appreciation to life, each other and what we all love to do."

One of Stevens's loves is volleyball. From an early age, Piper knew she would be playing the sport collegiately.

"Both of my parents played Division I volleyball, along with my mom's three sisters," said Piper. "Before I even knew what volleyball was, I was a seven-year old saying I wanted to play collegiate volleyball."

Stevens learned to love the sport and when it came time to pick a school, she was aiming for a high-academic institution. Her interest was, and still is, in the area of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math).

Dartmouth was the first school that contacted Stevens after she fractured her hip.

"I was out my whole freshman year of high school with a fractured hip and a Dartmouth coach saw me in our last tournament of the season," she said. "I talked to them for six months and in March of my sophomore year, before NCAA rules changed, I committed."

Out of Manhattan Beach, California, Stevens first visited Hanover in the winter.

"I was obsessed with it," she said. "I thought the snow was so cool. Just the chill in the air, I had never experienced it before. I stepped off the flight in Boston and felt a crispness to the air I had never felt before."

Another thing stood out.

"I also really love trees," said Stevens. "It's so random, but I wanted to go to a school with really good trees. All the leaves were gone at the time, but I knew there was a lot of potential."

The interest in trees grew from a visit to the East coast.

"I'm from Manhattan Beach, which is a beach community in Los Angeles," said Stevens. "All we have are palm trees or really big structurally-important trees. They are very methodically placed. There's no land anymore because everything is so developed. I visited my friend in Pennsylvania and there were all these groves of trees everywhere and it was such a foreign concept to me, but I thought it was so beautiful.

Another interest of Stevens was, and is, music.

"The Dartmouth Chamber Orchestra meets once a week on Sundays, which is our off day for volleyball," she said. "It's an opportunity for me to keep up with the viola, which I didn't think I'd be able to do balancing academics and athletics."
Piper Stevens and Sister Ivy

Stevens has a long history in music, having played the viola for more than 10 years.

"It was a big part of our home school district (Manhattan Beach Unified) to pick an instrument and stick with it because the program is excellent and well-supported," she said. "When I graduated high school, I thought I was done with orchestra. Then when we finished the Dartmouth volleyball season last fall, I was really looking to get more involved around campus."

The DCO was exactly what Stevens was looking for.

"Manageable time commitment low stress, but also finding a new group of people, another great community and getting to make some music," she said.

Stevens began making music in the third grade, playing the violin. She switched to the viola in the fourth grade and has stuck with it ever since.

"The Mira Costa program is Grammy Award winning," said Stevens. "It's super cutthroat and a lot to handle, but once I joined, there was no going back."

Throughout her life, Stevens has shown a commitment to so many different areas.

Stevens was always more into sports than music, but as they say… absence makes the heart grow fonder.

"As soon as I stepped away from music, I deeply missed it," said Stevens. "I think it's a piece that I can't really make tangible because I don't recognize it until I don't have it. Now, I'm taking music theory at Dartmouth and I'm looking to take private lessons so I can get a minor in music."

Being involved in the Dartmouth Chamber Orchestra, and the bible study, added a time commitment on Sunday, her day off from volleyball. In some ways, it adds stress, but the result is positive and worth it.

"Especially since our team is so close, there's a lot of time spent talking about volleyball, playing volleyball and just being involved in volleyball," said Stevens. "Having other outlets that don't involve volleyball are a really nice mental reset and when Monday comes, I am missing it and ready to get back in the gym."

Many Sundays, Stevens wishes she had more free time, but she's grateful nonetheless.

"I always leave happier than I come in," she said. "If I'm nervous about going or I'm worried I don't have the time, as soon as it's over, I'm glad I went, I feel a lot better and then I'm ready to keep working."

Part of Stevens' Sundays is also the bible study.

"I got an email in the preseason asking if this is something I'd like to do," she said. "I went one week and it's a community of female athletes who get together on Sunday nights and talk about their weeks and how to reset for the upcoming week through scripture. It's very mindset-based. I always leave with a much better outlook on my last week and the week ahead."

It's also a really good community of female student-athletes that Stevens may not have met otherwise.

"I've met a bunch of girls on other teams who I wouldn't otherwise have met, and developed great friendships," she said.

With Stevens' approach and mindset, she is someone who has grown (and will continue to grow) by the day. Every part of her experience has helped mold her into the person she is today, which will only continue.

Volleyball and music are two of the most prominent aspects.

On the court, the 2022 Big Green qualified for the Ivy League Volleyball Tournament.
Volleyball celebration vs. Penn

"We've made a lot of positive changes, our record has significantly improved from years prior and we're doing things we've never done before," said Stevens. "It's so exciting to be part of a program that's on the rise, and is making so many great developments with a team of girls who work so hard every day."

Working hard, whether it's in athletics or music, involves both a physical and mental aspect.

"Obviously when you're playing volleyball, a lot is physical, but having a high IQ and making smart plays can be huge to your game," said Stevens. "When you're playing an instrument, having the foresight to read ahead, or write in some notes ahead of time, can trigger certain performance aspects.

"You have to be smart, both physically and mentally, to elevate your level of play in both settings."

Stevens's play continues to elevate in all settings.

The sky is the limit for Piper Stevens.

"Piper's energy, on and off the court, and her ability to make plays when we've needed it most, is a true testament to who she is and what she brings," said Doran. "I am her biggest fan knowing what she is going through and how she is going about it, which is absolutely remarkable."

No matter the setting, Stevens is excelling for her sister, and an appreciation of every opportunity.

And every moment.

Schedules

Players Mentioned

Piper Stevens

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Schedules

Completed Event: Women's Volleyball versus Cornell on October 31, 2025 , Win , 3, to, 2

Completed Event: Women's Volleyball versus Columbia on November 1, 2025 , Win , 3, to, 0

Completed Event: Women's Volleyball versus Brown on November 7, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 3

Completed Event: Women's Volleyball versus Yale on November 8, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 3

Completed Event: Women's Volleyball at Penn on November 14, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 3

Completed Event: Women's Volleyball at Princeton on November 15, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 3