Talk about long road trips, Leilani Schlottfeldt, originally from Hawaii and a resident of Brazil, has taken a four year journey to "Happy Valley" as a member of the Penn State women's volleyball team. Her destination however, happened rather randomly.
The self-described quiet and shy back-row player heard about Penn State when she came to Pennsylvania to visit an aunt. "It was out of nowhere really. I didn't know about Penn State or how good they were. It just seemed like a good place to play. I knew they were good, but not to what extent," explains Schlottfeldt.
In an age of big time recruiting, the Brazilian never even came to watch a game. Although Schlottfeldt attended a college in Brazil for a short while, she was unable to continue her volleyball career there. "In Brazil, you can't play a sport and do school in college. So you choose to go to college or play a sport professionally after high school," says Schlottfeldt.
Schlottfeldt knows she made the right decision in coming to Penn State. The lone senior on the team this year, Schlottfeldt is the only one in her class that did not redshirt at some point during her athletic career. "It's lonely to know that I'm going to be the only one not to be here next year," she acknowledges.
"Leilani brings a knowledge to the game because she's been around for so long," states Katie Shumacher, a redshirt junior who was a member of Schlottfeldt's incoming class before redshirting her sophomore year.
Schlottfeldt, a key component of this season's success, is looked towards for momentum changes in critical moments during the game with her strong serving and defensive skills. However, even though she is the quiet one on the team, Schlottfeldt also believes her role is to cheer people up and keep them going strong during practice and matches.
"Leilani leads by example, but she'll also pull you aside and tell you how to improve something. She wouldn't tell or yell at you in front of everyone, she'd do so quietly. We depend on her for serving. I remember last year her serve specifically brought us back in a game against Pacific," says Nadia Edwards, also a redshirt junior and member of Schlottfeldt's original class.
As NCAA national champions, Schlottfeldt knows what it takes to for the team to win matches. "Teamwork and concentration, definitely," she says. Schlottfeldt experienced the feelings of coming so close to winning a national championship in previous years on very talented squads.
"It was actually a relief to win last year. We'd come so close for two years in a row, then finally! It was a goal achieved. It was special too, because it was in Hawaii where I was born," says Schlottfeldt.
"Leilani has been a bonus to the program and has made a difference. Nothing seems to rattle her and she shows that to the team. We look to her for leadership, especially on our young team this year. She's always stable and consistent. Leilani does what she needs to do and she gets the job done," says assistant coach Erin Appleman.
Schlottfeldt, who already has a bachelor's degree in logistics, will graduate this August with a master's also in logistics. She hopes begin a career in internal trade after school and work for a company that will transfer her to Brazil so she can enjoy her homeland.
Even though Schlottfeldt may be the quiet one on the team, she has a loud impact for the Nittany Lion. Thank goodness for long road trips.