Mesa State's Masler put aside hoop dreams for volleyball

By Dennis Anderson
Advertiser Staff Writer

Volleyball — the sport that she used to play at Maui High just to stay in shape for basketball — is paying Rosa Masler's way through Mesa State College in Colorado.

Rosa Masler, who played volleyball at Maui High to stay in shape for basketball, has developed into an all-conference player at Mesa State. Mesa State photo

Sports, and life, take interesting twists some times.

When Masler was leading Maui High's girls basketball team into two straight state tournaments, winning second-team all-state honors in 1999 and 2000, "I was told repeatedly by people in the community, coaches and friends that I could play Division I basketball," Masler said.

"But I had no guidance on what I needed to do to get recruited. ... It's hard to get noticed out here."

So Masler sent basketball game tapes to college coaches. She got some responses inviting her to walk on, or offering small amounts of financial aid, "but I really needed a scholarship," Masler said. "We are a single-parent household (my mom) and finances are tight."

Then fate intervened. Doris Sullivan of Hawai'i Athletic Preparatory Academy sent a bundle of volleyball tapes to Crick, and added a basketball tape including Masler — who was not an HAPA client. She asked Crick to deliver that tape to the Mesa State basketball coach.

"I noticed (on the information sheet with the tape) that she also played volleyball," Crick said. "I took the tape to the basketball coaches' office, where we watched the tape and he commented she would not make his team. So, I contacted her to send some volleyball tapes and the rest is history."

Although Masler said she was "not much of a volleyball player in high school" and described her freshman season at Mesa State in 2000 as "a disaster," she won the team's Most Improved Player award. And she became determined to earn it.

"The last two summers I worked out and played a lot of two-man volleyball on the beach at Kihei, mostly against big, strong, tall guys," Masler said. "It's crazy in the sand, playing on the guys' high net and diving for balls that are 10 feet away. It's so much fun, but so hard work, and that's what made me better. Everything improved.

"I love it, getting sweaty and sticky and jumping in the ocean because it's right there."

There is no ocean to jump into in Grand Junction, Colo., but Mesa State's opponents have felt the heat from Masler's spikes and blocks. Her statistics are modest (averages of 2.44 kills, 2.84 digs and 0.91 blocks in 104 games), but her impact is high, Crick said.

"She played all around with skill and efficiency. She hit the ball hard, blocked great, and hustled on defense. ... She was a dominant force at the net," Crick said.

Crick also credits Masler's summers on the beach. "Her game has changed dramatically," he said. "She played with a much better understanding of the game. She was a much different person this fall.

"Another thing that made her valuable was her attitude and leadership. She held us together," said Crick, whose team finished 18-10.

"Find me another Rosa, please, and send her to me."

QUICK SETS: Mesa State volleyball coach Rusty Crick notes, "The rest of the story, as Paul Harvey would say, is that the basketball coach saw Rosa Masler playing intramural basketball one night and asked her to come out for the team. She made the team and is now a dual sport athlete." ... Mesa State went 26-4 in basketball last season and won its division with Masler as a reserve post. ... Masler is almost 5 feet 11, same as she was at Maui High, but now she is a muscular 175 pounds. "You've heard of the Freshman 15? Well I gained the Freshman 25," she said. "I lost a lot of fat this summer; I had to turn it into muscle." ... Masler also is on the all-conference academic team. ... Freshman libero Kehau Regidor (Kaua'i '02 of Kalaheo) played in 48 games for Mesa State. ... Sophomore outside hitter Katie Kamelamela (Sacred Hearts '01) had to redshirt this season because she transferred from Chicago State.