Thomas hits opponents with personality

By Lyndsey Shinoda
Daily Forty-Niner

Women's volleyball

Which of Elisha Thomas' three personalities will be on the court today?

The sophomore volleyball player said she keeps her teammates entertained with her different personas and voices.

"I'm a hyper kind of crazy person," Thomas explained. "Vicky is passive and sweet. Rhonda is a bitch. My teammates will say, --Play like Rhonda"

Today Thomas seems like herself. The 6-foot-2 middle blocker hails from Grass Valley, Calif., and is making quite an impact in her second season with the women's volleyball team.

She is averaging 2.6 kills per game (147 in 57 games), and has the third best hitting percentage (.380), in the Big West Conference.

"I think it's fun to hit and block," Thomas said about her position. "I like that volleyball is a team sport, and your teammates motivate you to do well."

Growing up, Thomas played soccer, basketball and track. She didn't start concentrating on volleyball until high school. She played on club teams and started getting letters of interest from colleges during her sophomore year.

She originally wanted to go to UCLA or Penn State, colleges that had football teams. Then her coach told her that Long Beach was the best school, so she decided to go.

"I didn't know anything about the tradition of volleyball at Long Beach," Thomas said. "When I got here, I thought, this is big time."

Thomas has made her presence known on the court and off.

"I think I bring life to the team, like when things get intense, I like to crack a joke," she said. "I bring what I bring, and hopefully that's enough."

Head Coach Brian Gimmillaro agreed whole-heartedly.

"Elisha has great spirit and great team identity," Gimmillaro said. "She's one of those great team players who gives herself up for the team. The outgoing spirit you see is very helpful in the course of the season and for the spirit of the team."

When she has any down time, Thomas likes to go out with friends, and do anything that's active.

To psyche themselves up for games, Thomas said she and her teammates drive with their music blaring and knock down cones in the parking lot.

The undeclared major is steering toward a degree in film, psychology, business or architecture. She just knows that she wants to play volleyball until her body can't take it anymore.
Thomas is aiming for the 2004 Summer Olympics in Greece.
But for now, she is concentrating on this year's team. Although the 49ers have hit a few bumps in their path to the NCAA Championship, Thomas remains confident.

"It's a challenge, because we have to overcome a lot of adversity," she said. "We have to prove something since a lot of people doubt us. We shot ourselves in the foot, but we can heal real quick. It's gonna be a tough road, but I think it's possible."