Photo credit: Melanie Horn At a school known more for its academics, Allison Martinez and the Tigers volleyball program are making athletic waves. Westridge (22-5 overall, 10-2 in league) finished the regular season with a share of its first Prep League title since 2006. The Tigers have a roster full of impact players, all of […]
Photo credit: Melanie Horn
At a school known more for its academics, Allison Martinez and the Tigers volleyball program are making athletic waves.
Westridge (22-5 overall, 10-2 in league) finished the regular season with a share of its first Prep League title since 2006.
The Tigers have a roster full of impact players, all of whom have played a significant role in the league championship.
But it’s junior outside hitter Allison Martinez that fuels the engine.
Martinez averages, depending on the length of a match (whether it’s three, four or five games), about 7 kills per game, and her numbers are almost unmatched in the area.
When we asked Pasadena coaches who the best player in the area was, it always came down to Kayla Lund at Flintridge Sacred Heart and Martinez.
Lund is headed to the Univ. of Pittsburgh next year, and after another season at Westridge, Martinez is taking her talents to Cal State Long Beach.
For now, though, Martinez is getting ready for what they hope is a deep run in the CIF-Southern Section Division 4 playoffs.
The Tigers host Royal tonight at 6.
Martinez started at age 10, and according to her mother, Kelly, who played volleyball, “she was horrible.”
What a difference five years, club ball and playing for the U.S. has made in her career.
Martinez has been a MaxPreps All-American over the past two seasons, and she led the state in kills.
“In 2011, I started working with Allison through private lessons,” Westridge coach Otto Lacayo said. “Right from the start, one thing became very apparent, she wanted to be the best player she could possibly become. Now, Allison has become one of the most versatile players, and continues to find different ways to score points.”
Part of the reason for her ascension in the game, includes her skill level, vast array of swings, and her ability to hit to different areas on the court.
Aside from her physical skills, if you watch Martinez even just once, you’ll notice she’s always assuring in good times, and reassuring her teammates in bad times.
Makana Meyer, the other half of the Westridge dynamic duo is the second-leading scorer.
Eryn Boken has been solid all season, as has Angelica Raymundo, and many others.
Martinez is so good that even opposing coaches sing her praises.
“”What I respect is watching her play from her freshman year until now,” Mayfield coach Stephen Bernabe said. “You could always tell she would be a special player. I remember her playing with tons of fire and passion and telling myself she just needed time to develop before turning into a solid all around player. As a competitor, I love it, because she brings it every game, and challenges my team. I enjoy being able to push back. At the end of the day as a coach, you can only sit back and enjoy those moments when two good teams duke it out.”
In representing the United States and in her club ball experiences, Martinez has seen action in Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis, New Orleans, Indianapolis, Colorado Springs, Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Des Moines, Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, Provo, Connecticut and Puerto Rico.
Her parents, Kelly and Manuel, are what Martinez calls, “my biggest fans and harshest critics,” and that nobody has influenced her career or life more than her parents.
Matinez has been around Lacayo for more than six years, including her time at his San Gabriel Elite Club Ball, and Lacayo is the reason she chose Westridge.
As mentioned, Westridge is an academically advanced school, which makes her 3.6 grade-point average even more impressive.
When her time at Westridge and Long Beach State is done, Martinez said she’d like to play professional volleyball overseas.
But that’s years away.
For now, her focus is on visiting Royal tonight (Tuesday), in their playoff opener.
And time is of the essence.
“We have an older team, so we know this could be our last time playing together,” Martinez said. We need to turn on the sense of urgency.”
When asked why Westridge has an area best in wins (22), Martinez said, “It’s our ability to run complex and unorthodox volleyball plays that catches other teams off guard.”
As much as she might be right when it comes to this season being the Tigers best chance to make a finals run, 2017 should also be exciting and successful knowing both Meyer and Martinez will be back.
By the end of next year, Martinez could very likely be considered the best player in school history.
But she thinks more about “we,” than “I.”
“I have great teammates, and we all believe in one another,” Martinez said. “I’ve grown up with them, and I’ve also become the player I am today because of (coach) Otto.”
The thought of what she wants her legacy to be is also much more about her school than Martinez herself.
“By the time I’m gone, I hope we’ve done enough to make people think of Westridge as much for our athletic success as they do our academic excellence.”
