DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii junior middle blocker Melody Eckmier is No. 4 on the depth chart behind three seniors.
Reaching for the stars
Eckmier stays grounded in
reality while waiting her turn
KEEPING one's feet on the ground while reaching for the stars. If the ideology was a college major, it would be planetary geology.
If it was a college volleyball player, it would be Melody Eckmier.
The 6-foot-2 junior middle blocker for the Hawaii volleyball team looks at her situation -- No. 4 on the depth chart -- and understands the reality. She is playing behind a senior third-team All-American (Lauren Duggins) and two senior all-conference picks (first-teamer Maja Gustin and second-teamer Karin Lundqvist).
In most matches, Eckmier is the last player to get the call from Rainbow Wahine coach Dave Shoji. "Ody" has appeared in just 17 of the 79 games so far this season for No. 2 Hawaii, the fewest out of the 13-player roster.
And that's fine with Eckmier, a geology and geophysics major. She keeps reaching for the stars.
"Ask any athlete if they want to play and the answer is yes," she said. "But that's not the priority for me right now. What's important is to support the team, to not only help on the court when asked but to be there for anyone who needs help.
"People might think I'm not happy that I'm not the starting middle blocker after three years, that I'll transfer. But they are so wrong. I love it here. I am so grateful for the opportunity I've been given. And I'm looking forward to next year."
Next year, Eckmier will be one of two seniors on a rebuilding Wahine team (the other is redshirt senior Teisa Fotu). On one hand, Eckmier is looking forward to 2004, on the other, she doesn't want this season to end.
It will mean losing teammates she's been with since the freshman class of Duggins, Gustin, Eckmier, Kim Willoughby and Melissa Villaroman arrived at Manoa in 2000. Eckmier, who redshirted that first season, is dreading "Senior Night" on Nov. 15.
"Kim and I were reminiscing about that first year the other day," said Eckmier. "We were sitting down, watching Jessica (Sudduth), Andrea (Tukuafu) and Aven (Lee) getting their leis. We were saying, 'That's going to be us one day.' We were crying then.
"It seems like yesterday. It's been so much fun watching us all grow up, develop and mature. I know I'll be crying this time, too."
Eckmier said she'll particularly miss Gustin, her frequent roommate on road trips. The feeling is mutual.
"Ody is a very patient player and, as a person, the most patient I've ever met," said Gustin. "She is always so positive. Ody is a very solid person and a very solid volleyball player.
"She always gives such positive energy and her heart is so big. I like to room with her. We both like peaceful lives and we have the same humor. I know she's excited about having her time next year."
Eckmier's time will come, says Shoji.
"She understands that she is playing behind really good players," said Shoji. "We have a lot of depth at her position and she hasn't had a chance to play much. She'll get more of a chance next year, and she really deserves it.
"She is a model kid. I don't know where to be begin, I can't say enough about her. She's a total team player, the most conscientious player there could be. She practices hard, does everything you want her to do. And she's smart."
Eckmier said her GPA is somewhere around 3.7 or 3.8 (she had a 4.0 in high school). She likely will graduate in May and play next year as a graduate student.
Eckmier's sister Angela played for UCLA, but she chose not to follow in her footsteps. Likewise, Melody does not plan to follow her sister into teaching, instead considering doing research, possibly in planetary geology.
She's working at the campus volcanology lab and, this weekend, will head to the Big Island for a field trip to study the Kilauea eruption. On a previous trip, she had to take a sample from a lava flow.
"It gets pretty hot when you're that close," she said.
It's part of the adventure she expected when coming to Hawaii. Eckmier enjoys the lifestyle, the ability to ride a bike down to the beach, play some volleyball and swim.
"I wanted to get away from home and it's allowed me to develop into who I am," said Eckmier, who graduated from Simi Valley (Calif.) High. "A lot of schools dropped me when I tore my ACL (before her senior year) but Hawaii didn't. When other schools were writing me, telling me I did a great job in a tournament that I didn't even play in, Dave and (associate coach) Charlie (Wade) knew my situation. They had faith that I could contribute later when I got better.
"I have no doubts that this is the right place for me. This opportunity was handed to me on a silver platter and I took it."
Her patience and perseverance will pay off. Eckmier is convinced of it.
"Starting is a goal, a personal goal," she said. "I just want to be ready when Dave calls upon me. I want to do my job and do it well.
"But it's really too early to talk about next season. I'm excited for the rest of this year. I see awesome things for us."
