Meet the Wahine

Advertiser Staff

6-1 setter
Junior
Newport Beach, Calif.

UH is 60-4 with Carey as starting setter ... second-team all-WAC both years ... nine double-doubles (assists and digs) each of past two seasons ... career-high 72 assists in 2000 NCAA regional against Long Beach State ... first Wahine freshman to start at setter since 1985 ... Volleyball magazine All-American out of high school ... guided Newport Harbor High to back-to-back CIF Division I titles ... MVP of 1998 California State championship.

6-0 middle/outside
Sophomore
Fullerton, Calif.

Played in 31 games as freshman ... in her first collegiate start, hit 10-for-12, with seven digs and four blocks ... league MVP as senior at Fullerton Union High, when she led her team to CIF quarterfinals ... coached in soccer by her mother, who is from Hawai'i ... named to Volleyball Magazine's Fab 50 ... middle name is Ashleeleialoha ... won junior nationals with club team.

6-3 middle blocker
Freshman
Simi Valley, Calif.

Red-shirted last year ... missed senior high school season due to knee injury ... team MVP as junior ... all-league as sophomore ... Simi Valley High Academic Excellence Award winner with 4.0 grade point average ... played on USA Youth National Team in 1998 ... sister Angela plays for UCLA.

6-3 middle/outside
Sophomore
Maribor, Slovenia

2001 WAC Co-Freshman of the Year ... AVCA all-West Region ... led league in hitting (.370) and blocking (1.6 per game) ... 10th nationally in blocking ... collected double-double (15 kills, 10 blocks) and hit .714 in NCAA regional final against UCiSanta Barbara ... a night earlier, had 12 kills, nine digs and nine blocks against Long Beach State ... played on Slovenian national team ... won three Slovenian Cups with Infondbranik Maribor club team.

5-7 defensive specialist
Junior
Carson, Calif.

Played defensive specialist and outside hitter last two years at Cal State-Northridge ... 2000 Big Sky Defensive Specialist of the Year ... averaged 3.64 digs a game last year, including a 30-dig performance against Sacramento State ... sixth nationally with 4.56 digs a game as freshman, earning all-league honorable mention ... had 36 digs against Sacramento State and 23 kills against Idaho State ... won four league championships at Bishop Montgomery High, and state titles in 1996 and '98 ... three-time all-CIF selection and 1998 state MVP ... sister Heidi played for Wahine from 1996-99.

6-0 outside hitter
Senior
Kastel Luksic, Croatia

Only UH senior ... one of most versatile Wahine, Nikolic subbed for Kim Willoughby, Lily Kahumoku and Maja Gustin last season ... was first position player off bench and played in every match ... started four matches for Veronica Lima as sophomore, collecting 17 digs and 13 blocks against San Jose State ... played at Oregon as freshman ... MVP at European Junior Championships in 1995, and played for Croatian Junior National team in 1996 ... played beach volleyball in her hometown with NBA player Toni Kukoc.

5-11 middle/outside
Sophomore
Kailua

Transferred from Washington State, where she was backup middle and outside hitter as freshman ... 2000 Kamehameha graduate ... won state championships her final three years in high school, and led team to a No. 1 national ranking ... all-state three years ... played club for Dave Shoji's Asics Rainbow team ... recruited by Hawai'i, UNLV, Colorado and WSU ... son Koby was born in March.

5-8 setter
Junior
Honolulu

Played in all but one match last year as backup setter and defensive specialist ... amassed 20 assists, a kill, two digs and two aces in one game against Tulsa ... played in every match as freshman and started twice ... first team all-state as senior, when University High was second in state ... runner-up to Lily Kahumoku as state player of year ... career goal is to be a pilot.

5-6 defensive specialist
Sophomore
Carson, Calif.

Played in all but one match as freshman, collecting a career-high 11 digs in NCAA second round ... school MVP in volleyball at St. Joseph High, and all-league in basketball ... Filipino and Hawaiian descent ... played libero internationally last summer for former Wahine All-American Deitre Collins.

5-6 defensive specialist
Freshman
'Aiea

Won OIA West championship as freshman and senior at 'Aiea High ... honorable mention all-state as senior ... played basketball two years, earning OIA West honorable mention honors ... plays bass guitar and trombone in her family's band, NYK (Not Yet Known).

6-0 outside hitter
Sophomore
Napoleonville, La.

2001 WAC Co-Freshman of the Year ... averaged 3.14 kills and team-high 3.02 digs a game ... collected a dozen double-doubles ... amassed 20 kills, 15 digs and six blocks in NCAA regional against Long Beach State, which recruited her ... third cousin of Olympian, and former 49er, Danielle Scott ... played on 2000 junior national team ... at Assumption High, earned all-state honors in volleyball, basketball and track and field ... volleyball team won three consecutive state championships, with Willoughby a two-time state player of year ... all-state four times in basketball, and twice player of year ... one of Volleyball Magazine's Fab 50.

(6) Litiana Damuni

6-0 outside hitter
Junior
La'ie

Transferred in the last week ... all-region second team for Salt Lake City Community College in 1999, when she was third on team in kills, digs and blocks ... Bruins finished second in 1999 NJCAA National Tournament, losing to Miami Dade 18-16 in fifth game of championship ... SLCCC went 45-4 in 1999, and hired Punahou graduate Julie Morgan as head coach the next year ... Bekka McLachlin i daughter of UH announcer Chris and former Wahine Beth i is sophomore setter at SLCCC ... Damuni was OIA East second team in 1995 as Kahuku junior. OIA East Boys Player of Year in 1995 was former Rainbow Torry Tukuafu, then a Kahuku senior.

(10) Megan O'Brian

5-11 outside/defensive specialist
Freshman
San Juan Capistrano, Calif.

Named best all-around player her senior year at Dana Hills High School ... also lettered two years in track ... named to school's honor roll three times ... intends to major in Marine Science ... calls making UH roster her biggest athletic thrill.