Thursday, September 6, 2001
[ WAHINE VOLLEYBALL ]
Nikolic’s Croatian, Latin, German, Russian, Slovenian, Italian ... if you dropped Tanja Nikolic off anywhere in Europe, she would be able to communicate without many problems.
flexibility a key
for Wahine
The senior from Croatia fills
many spots on the court
for the WahineBy Grace Wen
gwen@starbulletin.comPut her in any spot on the volleyball court and the Croatian native thrives as well.
The 6-foot outside hitter has filled almost as many roles on the court for the Hawaii volleyball team in her three-year career as the languages she speaks.
Hawaii's first player off the bench last year played on the right, left and in the middle when other players were injured. The only position she hasn't played is setter.
"I wish I played just one position ... that's how players are trained in Europe," Nikolic said. "We kind of don't have back row players. If you can not hit and do everything, you don't play volleyball."
She dreamt of being an outside hitter since her days at Oregon where she competed her freshman year and recorded one of the highest attack percentages in the Pac-10 conference as a middle blocker.
But when she transferred to Hawaii, the Wahine needed a backup for Veronica Lima, who was hampered by back problems.
Nikolic's versatility finally translated into a starting role this season. But she struggled in the Wahine's first two matches against top-ranked Nebraska and No. 4-rated Wisconsin.
She had only 11 kills in two matches and was hitting -.063. But Nikolic had a breakout performance last weekend at the Wahine Classic.
She hammered a career-high 19 kills against Michigan and was virtually unstoppable in a match that coach Dave Shoji called ugly. Her hitting percent age jumped drastically to .255.
But Nikolic cares little about the numbers. "I don't care about the statistics," Nikolic said. "I hate statistics."
When: 7 p.m. today (Utah State) and Friday (USC) and 1 p.m. Saturday (Cincinnati) WAHINE VOLLEYBALL
Where: Stan Sheriff Center
TV: KFVE, Ch. 5 on Thursday and Friday
Radio: Live, KCCN 1420-AM
Internet: http://uhathletics.hawaii.edu
She may not like the stats but she provides an additional threat on offense for Hawaii which is looking for as many offensive sources as it can find.
"She's seeing the block better," Shoji said. "She likes the quicker tempo. It was just a matter of time before she started to play better."
Adds setter Margaret Vakasausau: "She's been an incredible utility player for us the last couple of years. And now she's falling into her own position more. She's getting to play the outside every rotation. We know what it's like to hang out on the bench. And she wants to prove it and make sure she stays in the starting lineup."
And along with Vakasausau, Nikolic had stepped into a greater leadership role as well. It's been a definite adjustment for Nikolic who was always the youngest on her club team (Kastela) and guided by the older players.
"Playing with older players was much easier," Nikolic said. "They can always play on some level."
Nikolic could have just as easily been describing her own progression this year which means that great things are still in store for her. And though she's searched for one position to play, Nikolic can be grateful that she has acquired the skills to play different positions.
The versatility lends itself to the beach game which she aspires to play after her career concludes this year. Before moving to the United States, Nikolic was a former beach national champion in Croatia.
With the way she's mastered languages and various positions on the indoor court, it shouldn't be a problem.
PROJECTED STARTERS
Hawaii (2-3)
Ht. KPG Aces DPG S M. Vakasausau (Jr.) 5-8 .27 3 2.33 OH Tanja Nikolic (Sr.) 6-0 3.33 5 3.00 OH Kim Willoughby (So.) 6-0 5.33 4 2.83 MB Melody Eckmier (Fr.) 6-3 0.72 0 0.06 MB Lauren Duggins (So.) 6-0 1.33 2 2.11 Opp Maja Gustin (So.) 6-3 3.28 4 0.39 DS Hedder Ilustre (Jr.) 5-7 0.00 1 1.78
Utah State (2-1)
Ht. KPG Aces Digs S Chelsi Neves (Sr.) 5-9 1.36 2 2.09 OH Lisa Borom (Sr.) 6-1 2.82 3 2.73 OH Tanya Birch (Sr.) 5-11 3.10 3 2.20 MB Erin Cartwright (So.) 6-1 4.09 2 1.64 MB Michelle Matheson (Sr.) 6-0 2.18 0 0.36 Opp Hailey Mackay (Jr.) 6-2 0.60 0 0.36 DS Heather Olmstead (Sr.) 5-9 0.73 1 2.27
UH Athletics
Ka Leo O Hawaii