Griz volleyball signs two from California
11/14/2005 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
University of Montana volleyball assistant head coach Dave Best announced Monday that Taryn Wright of Fair Oaks, Calif., and Stephanie Stromath of Manhattan Beach, Calif., have signed National Letters of Intent and will join the Grizzlies beginning with the 2006 season.
Wright, a 5-10 setter, will be a 2006 graduate of St. Francis High School. A four-year varsity starter, Wright was named All-Delta League all four years of high school, led SFHS to a perfect four-year league mark of 56-0 and was named the Delta League's MVP as a junior and senior.
St. Francis will play in its sectional tournament this weekend. The Nor-Cal tournament begins next weekend.
Wright, who has 10 years of club volleyball experience, leads the state in service aces with 182. She led the state in service aces as a junior with 226 and has over 3,300 career assists, 800 digs, 750 kills and 315 blocks.
"What we saw in Taryn was her presence on the court and how she handles herself in that position," Best said. "She has the characteristics that we were looking for in a setter. Her decision-making is very good, she's a great athlete and she is the type of person other athletes want to be around and want to play with. She's going to be a fantastic player here."
"I chose Montana because I loved the family atmosphere, the coaches, the players on the team and the academic opportunities offered at the University," Wright said. "I was very excited signing the NLI because it meant that all my hard work had paid off, and that I will be a part a great team and University."
Stromath, a 6-1 middle/right side hitter, will be a 2006 graduate of Mira Costa High School. The Mustangs, who are currently in the CIF (California Interscholastic Federation) playoffs, where they are favored to win their second straight state championship, are prepvolleyball.com's No. 2-ranked team in the nation.
Stromath led MCHS to a 29-3 record as a junior in 2004 and the CIF Division I state title.
Mira Costa High, which has won the last four Bay League championships, plays a national schedule and this year finished second at the Chicago Nike Challenge and the Vegas Durango Tournament.
Stromath competes for the X Volleyball Club and was a 2005 participant at the USA Volleyball Junior Olympic volleyball championships.
"Stephanie is a high-energy player and a high-energy person," Best said. "She is demanding of herself, and she is demanding of her teammates.
"She comes from a volleyball family with a great wealth of volleyball talent. Her older sister took a visit here a few years back, and her older brother is an athlete on the volleyball team at UCLA. I just think when you come from a family like that, it makes you a very intense competitor in every way, shape and form."
"Out of all the schools I considered, Montana really stuck out," Stromath said. "The campus is so beautiful. I can't wait to spend the next four years in Missoula. There are nothing but good things in store for the UM volleyball program, and I'm very excited that I'm going to get to be a part of it. Nikki (Best), Dave and Allie (Weston) are great people as well as coaches, and I'm honored that I'll have the opportunity to play for them next year."
Montana loses seniors Diana Thompson and Audrey Jensen from its 2005 team, which went 14-15 and finished tied for seventh in the Big Sky Conference with a 3-11 mark.
"The thing I think Taryn and Stephanie add to the program is a consistency with regards to the competitive level of athlete we've been able to bring into the program," Best said. "Certainly we always look for the best athlete we can, but we also look for two other characteristics, mainly how competitive they are and the willingness to be together in a relationship-type game.
"Volleyball is one of the best relationship-type games. It's the smallest area of court that any six players play together and the bottom line is in our sport, you have to have everyone play together because you can't score with just one person. The game can't be dominated by one person. The thing that both of these athletes bring is that they are able to get other athletes around them to play better. And that's impressive.?
Wright, a 5-10 setter, will be a 2006 graduate of St. Francis High School. A four-year varsity starter, Wright was named All-Delta League all four years of high school, led SFHS to a perfect four-year league mark of 56-0 and was named the Delta League's MVP as a junior and senior.
St. Francis will play in its sectional tournament this weekend. The Nor-Cal tournament begins next weekend.
Wright, who has 10 years of club volleyball experience, leads the state in service aces with 182. She led the state in service aces as a junior with 226 and has over 3,300 career assists, 800 digs, 750 kills and 315 blocks.
"What we saw in Taryn was her presence on the court and how she handles herself in that position," Best said. "She has the characteristics that we were looking for in a setter. Her decision-making is very good, she's a great athlete and she is the type of person other athletes want to be around and want to play with. She's going to be a fantastic player here."
"I chose Montana because I loved the family atmosphere, the coaches, the players on the team and the academic opportunities offered at the University," Wright said. "I was very excited signing the NLI because it meant that all my hard work had paid off, and that I will be a part a great team and University."
Stromath, a 6-1 middle/right side hitter, will be a 2006 graduate of Mira Costa High School. The Mustangs, who are currently in the CIF (California Interscholastic Federation) playoffs, where they are favored to win their second straight state championship, are prepvolleyball.com's No. 2-ranked team in the nation.
Stromath led MCHS to a 29-3 record as a junior in 2004 and the CIF Division I state title.
Mira Costa High, which has won the last four Bay League championships, plays a national schedule and this year finished second at the Chicago Nike Challenge and the Vegas Durango Tournament.
Stromath competes for the X Volleyball Club and was a 2005 participant at the USA Volleyball Junior Olympic volleyball championships.
"Stephanie is a high-energy player and a high-energy person," Best said. "She is demanding of herself, and she is demanding of her teammates.
"She comes from a volleyball family with a great wealth of volleyball talent. Her older sister took a visit here a few years back, and her older brother is an athlete on the volleyball team at UCLA. I just think when you come from a family like that, it makes you a very intense competitor in every way, shape and form."
"Out of all the schools I considered, Montana really stuck out," Stromath said. "The campus is so beautiful. I can't wait to spend the next four years in Missoula. There are nothing but good things in store for the UM volleyball program, and I'm very excited that I'm going to get to be a part of it. Nikki (Best), Dave and Allie (Weston) are great people as well as coaches, and I'm honored that I'll have the opportunity to play for them next year."
Montana loses seniors Diana Thompson and Audrey Jensen from its 2005 team, which went 14-15 and finished tied for seventh in the Big Sky Conference with a 3-11 mark.
"The thing I think Taryn and Stephanie add to the program is a consistency with regards to the competitive level of athlete we've been able to bring into the program," Best said. "Certainly we always look for the best athlete we can, but we also look for two other characteristics, mainly how competitive they are and the willingness to be together in a relationship-type game.
"Volleyball is one of the best relationship-type games. It's the smallest area of court that any six players play together and the bottom line is in our sport, you have to have everyone play together because you can't score with just one person. The game can't be dominated by one person. The thing that both of these athletes bring is that they are able to get other athletes around them to play better. And that's impressive.?
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