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sports:
men's volleyball
Freshman standout
holds veteran status
By Gabriel Lefrancois
On-line Forty-Niner
Growing up in St.
Louis, Mo., Long Beach State freshman Scott Touzinsky never
imagined he would be playing volleyball in California, let
alone one of the 49ers' starting six at only18 years old.
The 6-foot-7 outside
hitter began his volleyball career at the age of seven when
a friend's mom asked Touzinsky's mother if he would like to
play on a team she was starting for children.
"She wanted to
bring us up," Touzinsky said.
Volleyball was
not Touzinsky's choice of sports. Growing up in Missouri,
he said a sport picked is a sport to stick with because the
choices were slim. But at the same time, he realized he was
only in second grade.
"I really wanted
to stick with basketball because I came from a basketball
family," Touzinsky said. "My mom wanted me to try volleyball
and being so young, I agreed to it. Keith, my brother, was
in high school at the time and he played volleyball, so he
said he would help me out."
His choice was
a good one for volleyball and the teams he has been apart
of because Touzinsky's credentials read like a perfect resume.
He led St. John
Vianney High School to four consecutive state titles and was
named the 2000 Missouri State Player of the Year. He was also
on the All-State first team twice and first team all-league
three times.
The list continues.
As a member of
two Junior Olympic teams, Touzinsky was an All-America selection.
The team he was playing for, the Missouri Thunder, captured
the gold medal in the 16-and-under division in 1998 and the
silver medal in the 17-and-under division in 1999. Both Junior
Olympic teams were coached by his brother, Keith.
"My brother had
so much more knowledge of the sport being older and all,"
Touzinsky said. "We would go to the gym when I was in high
school and he could give me all the extra help I needed. Since
he played at the college level, he knew the direction to take
me in. I always wanted to be like my brother."
The LBSU coaching
staff put forth a lot of effort to get the No. 1 recruit to
play for the 49ers, although Touzinsky knew since his junior
year in high school that he wanted to play for The Beach.
"Any time you recruit
a player that is coveted, they have many options," Head Coach
Alan Knipe said. "The person can decide whether he wants to
play here or there. We had a good feeling that Scott wanted
to play here."
Knipe and Assistant
Coach Andy Read had a head start on the recruitment competition.
They were Touzinsky's coaches on the Junior National Team.
Knipe said they started watching his play more closely about
two years ago.
"I really wanted
to get out of the Midwest," Touzinsky said. "The college coaches
knew my family and thought I was going to stick around because
I was so close with them. I knew the best volleyball was not
in the Midwest so I decided to look elsewhere."
Elsewhere is now
LBSU where he brings all his knowledge and skill to the 49er
squad. Being the No. 1 recruit, Touzinsky was sent letters
from nearly every Division I school in the nation.
UCLA tried to make
him a Bruin, but had no luck when Touzinsky verbally agreed
to play for LBSU. Although a verbal agreement could have been
changed, which the UCLA recruitment staff suggested Touzinsky
to think about, he knew his home was with the 49ers.
"It was a no brainer,"
Touzinsky said. "I knew the coaching staff for four years
and knew Matt (Prosser), David McKienzie and Jim (Polster)
from the Junior National Team. We are a close group and we
became really good friends."
The move to California
was somewhat of a big step for Touzinsky, having never been
away from home and facing the timid ordeal of meeting new
people. He said the move has been good for him because he
has been able to see many new things, while his responsibility
level has risen a great deal.
"Coming from the
Midwest, I never thought I would be in California, let alone
be the No. 1 recruit," Touzinsky said. "The guys have shown
me a lot of respect and the coaching staff has been really
helpful. In the end, I know I made the right decision."
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