DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii middle blocker Lauren Duggins has struggled to gain weight, but her quickness is a plus, coach Dave Shoji says.
Duggins pulling Lauren Duggins has tried everything.
her weight
The thin middle blocker
Gustin injury costs depth
brings quickness and
finesse to the position
Game DayBy Grace Wen
gwen@starbulletin.comHer problem is one most people would love to have. Eat everything and never gain a pound. Grub constantly and still have nothing to show for it.
A lot passes through her lips even if nothing stays on her hips. She savors her mother's chocolate chip and Heath cookies and the flavor of her father's barbecue tri-tips. But gaining weight can be just as hard as losing it for the genetically blessed.
"Getting stronger is the biggest challenge. I ate a lot more than you normally would," said the Rainbow Wahine middle blocker. "And they give you these huge shakes that fill you up for the whole day. It's so filling and they're like, 'You need to have this, this and this in your diet,' but I can't eat anymore.
"(Last) spring was kind of hard. I worked out a lot and got a lot stronger. I didn't gain weight. I gained strength. It's not a matter of eating. I eat a lot. I just have a high metabolism. We work out three hours a day. How can you not lose weight?"
Besides running and lifting weights, Duggins and junior Nohea Tano, the team's other "skinny minnie," had an additional task as part of their training regimen. Every morning, they would have to gulp thick weight-gainer shakes in front of a trainer.
The effort was hardly worth the result as Duggins added just one pound to her 6-foot, 144-pound frame. No one can fault a speedy metabolism. For Duggins, it's one of the few times that "hard work" didn't pay off.
Born of Hawaiian, Chinese, German, Native American and Irish descent, Duggins has always been rail thin. Her mother Deb, a Kailua native, said that Duggins' current form is the biggest she's ever been.
"Her knees were the biggest part of her legs and her head was the biggest part of her body," Deb Duggins said. "And her hands were huge. You saw these toothpick arms with those hands stuck on it. It was awful. She was so skinny. She used to have growing pains."
Big hands and knees were probably helpful in soccer, Duggins' first sport. The California native played soccer from the age of 4 and was coached by her mother. Duggins didn't touch a volleyball until the sixth grade. Her first experience was so frustrating that she wouldn't go near the sport again for two years.
Her aspirations were to play collegiate soccer, until a volleyball clinic changed the course of her life. The clinic was fun and soon after Duggins was asking her parents to let her play club volleyball.
Deb credits Lauren's first coaches, Butch and Barbara May (parents of beach Olympian Misty May), for infusing her with a love for the game.
"She picked up volleyball really quickly. They made her really start developing a passion for the game," Deb Duggins said. "It wasn't even a year and she said, 'Mom, I'm really starting to like volleyball a lot better than soccer.' "
In high school, Duggins continued both sports and also ran track. When forced to choose one over the other by a club soccer coach, Duggins shocked him by selecting volleyball.
Once Duggins learned that Hawaii coaches were interested in her, her fate was sealed.
She had whittled her choices down to Hawaii and UC Santa Barbara. The relaxed atmosphere and proximity to the beach of both campuses made it a close race. Hawaii won in the end because of her family.
Deb grew up in Kailua and had an older sister and two brothers who still live in the islands. As a kid, Lauren spent summers in Kaneohe with her cousins hanging out at the sand bar and building coconut houses.
"I know Hawaii won out because she wanted to learn more about her heritage," Deb said. "And the environment was conducive to her not ever having to wear shoes. Both my children hate shoes. When they were little, it was difficult to keep shoes on them."
Despite being anything but the prototypical Hawaii middle blocker, the undersized but quick former Fab 50 pick solidified a spot in the starting lineup last year. Duggins led the defense with 1.12 blocks, was second in digs (2.98) and third in kills (1.85) en route to earning second-team all-conference honors.
Known more for her defense, Duggins made a statement in Hawaii's opener against Ohio State when she banged 10 kills and hit .769. It was the type of performance Hawaii coach Dave Shoji hopes to see more of this season.
"She's getting stronger," Shoji said. "She has a little more pop on the ball this year, so that's pretty much what we need for her to get better and better. She has command of her game.
"She's a lot different than what most teams want in a middle blocker, including us. Obviously you look for someone like a (Heather) Bown or Maja (Gustin), but she has given us quickness, finesse. She's just a solid kid overall, a perfect role-type player."
A supporting part is exactly how she likes it. Athletic and agile, Duggins has a shy nature and doesn't care for the limelight. She would sooner be in the background than a superstar.
"I have the perfect role because I don't get any media. I do my job and that's it," Duggins said. "I enjoy playing and not necessarily worrying about the score.
"I'm not ever going to be a Kim (Willoughby) or a Lily (Kahumoku). I'll never be a Maja. You got to accept that you're not going to get that many sets. It's totally fine, that's my role. They're more likely to put the ball down than I am."
Her teammates value her contributions to the team.
"I've seen a big maturity in her this year," senior Jennifer Carey said. "She's talking a lot more, which is something she's always been criticized for. She's really become a leader on and off the court. It was a big step for her to become more aggressive.
"She's a really nice girl, but it's nice to see her get a little competitive and show some color on the court. She doesn't see that many balls in the middle, but she might be a secret weapon. She might see the one set that changes the match around."
BACK TO TOP |
Gustin injury depletes
Wahine’s depthThe depth Hawaii coaches were so thrilled to have this season has nearly disappeared in one position and been reduced in another.
The Rainbow Wahine have gone from crowded in the middle to hoping nothing else happens to its middles.
Junior Maja Gustin has a stress fracture in her left foot and will not play this weekend. Team physician Dr. Jim Nichols said the all-conference middle blocker will be out indefinitely as they continue to evaluate and run more tests.
Gustin missed all of Hawaii's matches in the Aston Imua Challenge last weekend with what doctors believed was a case of plantar fasciitis. She practiced once this week before being relegated to the exercise bike.
Also, sophomore Melody Eckmier strained her left knee in practice Wednesday and will miss this weekend's matches as well.
Freshman Cayley Thurlby has decided to redshirt the season. Thurlby was the third setter behind Margaret Vakasausau and Jennifer Carey.
Star-Bulletin staff BACK TO TOP |
When: Today and tomorrow, 7 p.m. Game Day
Where: Stan Sheriff Center
TV: KFVE, Ch. 5
Radio: Live, 1420-AM
Notes: Injured middle blocker Worthy Lien is day-to-day as is Wahine middle Maja Gustin. ... The Mustangs don't have many wins against the Rainbow Wahine, but all three victories have come in Hawaii. Warriors coach Mike Wilton guided Cal Poly to all three wins in the 1980s. ... Cal Poly features a set of twins in setter Carly O'Halloran and outside hitter Kristen O'Halloran.
Probable starters
CAL POLY (1-5) Ht. KPG Aces Digs S Carly O'Halloran (Sr.) 6-0 0.66 27 2.74 MB Margaret Donoghue (Sr.) 6-1 2.69 38 2.77 MB Worthy Lien (Sr.) 6-2 3.33 0 0.33 OH Jessica Diepersloot (So.) 6-1 3.29 5 2.52 OH Molly Duncan (Jr.) 5-11 2.38 8 3.71 Opp Kristen O'Halloran (Sr.) 6-0 1.42 0 2.63 L Gwen Hubbard (Jr.) 5-6 NA NA 2.82 HAWAII (6-0) Ht. KPG Aces DPG S Margaret Vakasausau (Sr.) 5-8 .21 0 2.05 MB Karin Lundqvist (Jr.) 6-3 1.64 2 1.43 MB Lauren Duggins (Jr.) 6-0 2.17 2 2.72 OH Lily Kahumoku (Jr.) 6-2 4.89 4 3.16 OH Kim Willoughby (Jr.) 6-0 6.10 13 3.55 Opp Nohea Tano (Jr.) 5-11 1.50 0 1.10 L Melissa Villaroman (Jr.) 5-6 NA NA 2.75
UH Athletics
