It just keeps getting better. For sophomore Sadie DeQuattro, the saying couldn’t be more true. The setter for the Allan Hancock College women’s volleyball team will leave in the fall to play for Lindenwood University in Belleville, Illinois.
DeQuattro began her volleyball career early on in middle school, inspired by seeing her mother coach the Paso Robles High School Wildcats.Watching her mother play and coach for so many years made it just about impossible for DeQuattro to stay away from the game.
“It’s exciting,” she said. “There’s so much going on, and it’s so fast moving.”
DeQuattro will leave with quite a legacy behind her. At the end of her sophomore season, she was ranked third in conference in assists and eighth in digs. The young superstar is also ranked among the top 25 in the state for assists.
DeQuattro served as team captain for the Bulldogs for both volleyball and softball during her sophomore season.
Julio Molina, the Hancock women’s volleyball coach, recalled many examples of DeQuattro’s dedication.
“During her first summer playing for Allan Hancock College, Sadie showed up to every early morning practice at 8 a.m., driving from Paso,” Molina said.
To her coach and teammates, DeQuattro is a model of leadership and hard work, simply described as “driven.”
“Sadie is incredibly easy to coach,” Molina said. “She’s proactive in gaining as much knowledge as possible.”
The only thing DeQuattro might have more of than assists is awards. The setter was named team MVP and team captain for her high school volleyball team, and was named the team’s best utility player on the Allan Hancock Bulldogs her freshman year. Her most prestigious award, however, was being named first team all conference setter for this season.
In addition to being a starting setter on the volleyball team for the past two years, she played softball as an outfielder for the Bulldogs both her freshman and sophomore year.
Beyond the court (and diamond), DeQuattro has decided to major in psychology. In the past two years, the athletic scholar has managed to maintain higher than a 3.0 GPA.
This article appears in Jun 23-30, 2011.