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Posted at 1:07 p.m., Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Preps: Long trip to top for Seabury's Meyer

By Mary Beth Bishop
The Maui News

OLINDA, Maui — Yacine Meyer can't pinpoint any one particular person or time that was solely responsible for her athletic success.

If anything, each experience and individual she's met along the way has shaped her into the determined, energetic person she is today.

Meyer and her family moved from Singapore to Hana when she was in the 3rd grade, and she attended school in East Maui until enrolling at Seabury Hall as a freshman.

Now, as a senior starter for the Spartans, ranked sixth in the Advertiser poll, she is one of the Maui Interscholastic League's most dominant volleyball players.

"I got into volleyball in the 6th grade in Hana,'' said Meyer, who also plays basketball and soccer for Seabury, to The Maui News. "I miss Hana and all my friends and stuff, but it was a really good change to move here — a lot more experience, different coaches and it was a lot better for me.''

Seabury Hall coach Scottie Zucco, in his second year with the Spartans, didn't need long to figure out what kind of person Meyer is both on and off the court.

"I could say a lot,'' he said. "The first thing you see in Yacine is her incredible athleticism. But, you know, I don't like it when people say that automatically because there's so much more to her than her sheer determination, sheer athleticism and ability to just get it done.''

Perhaps even more important is Meyer's realization that her behavior impacts her teammates, and even the atmosphere of a match.

"Last year, she spent a lot of time and energy improving her mental toughness,'' Zucco said. "She spent a lot of time making sure her body language was the right form of display in terms of what the other girls see.

"She started to learn last year that the girls look to her in the middle of the game for energy and enthusiasm, for inspiration or just, 'We want to follow you.' ''

The 5-foot-8 Meyer, who has already earned MIL player of the year honors in volleyball and basketball, returned for her senior year tougher than before, and has helped Seabury to an 8-0 league record.

"I get intense, yeah,'' Meyer said with a laugh. "I just want to be a good leader on the court for the girls and just go hard, go for every ball and go 110 percent, not just 100 percent.''

Meyer is usually the first player on the court and the last to leave the gym, and she values feedback from her coaches.

And don't forget how her mind seems to work double-time when she's in a game situation.

"(I think about) if I need to make this nice pass for this certain play, then I need to make sure it's perfect for the front row,'' she said. "I think ahead a lot and figure out if this ball's going to be a tip or going to be a down ball.''

Meyer said she doesn't care how she contributes.

"I look at what I can do to help with the next play, whether it be on offense or defensively,'' she said. "Just, like, call it out and call the plays earlier, and just try to get there quicker and think what's in that person's head.''

And should the team struggle at any point?

"I tell the girls, 'OK, we can do this, right back,' '' Meyer said. "We'll try to figure out a play – I'll go to the setters and ask them for good advice or what play we should do, because I know they'll make that set for me to make that play.''

Although she already makes an impact wherever she is on the court, Meyer has an insatiable desire to improve — so much so, in fact, that it almost blinds her to how good she already is.

"It's interesting, you know,'' Zucco said. "Yacine, she's one of those girls that no matter what happens on any given play, she can find a way for her to have done something better.

"So in that regard, she doesn't see herself as a great player – she just sees herself for what she is and how she can get better.''

Meyer is starting to weigh her college options.

"(I know) it's not going to be easy transitioning from high school (to college),'' she said. "Going out there and trying to be confident and playing with those 6-foot Mainland girls and show them that you're not just an incoming freshman or something.

"I think it will be hard but I think I can make the transition and work as hard as any girl out there and do the best I can do.''

Her coach is also confident she'll continue being a strong presence on a new team.

"She's hungry for knowledge, she's got a lot to say and she's got a lot going on upstairs,'' Zucco said. "She's going to explode when she gets a great college coach, somebody who can deliver all the right technique and skills.''

For now, Meyer is enjoying just being with her teammates.

"We're very close, all the girls,'' she said. "We love each other and we bond really well and when we play together we have really good chemistry. I've learned a lot from them.

"It's not just (about) one person — everyone is a part of this team. It's a good team.''

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