Thursday, Jul. 17, 2008

Pacific next up for RC's Terpstra

Volleyball standout verbally commits

RIPON — Andrea Terpstra, a 6-foot-2-inch middle blocker going into her senior year at Ripon Christian High, verbally committed Wednesday to play volleyball at University of the Pacific.

Pacific was one of a half-dozen Division I colleges aggressively recruiting Terpstra, who was selected to The Bee's All-Stanislaus District team last fall.

Terpstra said she was offered a full-ride scholarship by the Tigers — tuition, room, board and fees total $38,000 a year — and will sign a letter of intent in November. NCAA rules forbid coaches from commenting on recruits until they sign the letter of intent.

"When I took recruiting trips, I would talk to coaches and imagine myself playing for them," said Terpstra, who has a 3.0 GPA and intends to study communications. "At UOP, coach (Charlie) Wade seems like a great fit. I'm excited about playing for him."

Terpstra had 298 kills, 49 aces and 97 blocks as RC was 20-7 and reached the NorCal Division V semifinals last fall. She led RC to a second-place TVL finish and a 10-2 run to close the season.

UC Davis, Fresno State, Cal State Fullerton, Gonzaga and Texas-El Paso were among the colleges recruiting Terpstra, who helped the Delta Volleyball Club under-17 team to a bronze medal at the Junior Olympics this month.

It was Terpstra's second season of travel volleyball, and she was one of the 10 players named to the all-tournament team. She played basketball at RC until deciding before her junior year to focus on volleyball.

By focusing on volleyball, Terpstra said, she improved her hitting, blocking and jumping.

"I've worked on my arm swing, but coaches say I need to get better and I'm working hard," she said. "The big thing for me was increasing my vertical. You've got to have the height to be an effective player up at the net.

"My goal when I decided to focus on volleyball was to earn a D-I scholarship, so I'm thrilled."

Terpstra's workout schedule also got her father's attention.

"She dedicated herself to volleyball," said Mike Terpstra, who was an assistant basketball coach at UOP in 1995 and earned a master's degree at the school. "Instead of basketball practice, she'd spend two, three hours a day working at the sports performance lab we own in Ripon.

"UOP's coach told us he was impressed with her work ethic and athleticism. Having played two years of travel ball, coaches are excited about her potential."

Wade, entering his third year as head coach, is rebuilding a program that was once among the best in the nation. Pacific advanced to the first 24 NCAA tournaments, winning national titles in 1985 and 1986, but its last postseason trip was in 2004. Pacific hit bottom in Wade's first year, going 8-21, and was 18-9 last year.