49er’s
game has worldwide appeal
By Karl Peterson
On-line Forty-Niner
 Kessie
Doering first moved away from her family
at age 17 to play for a more competitive
German club team.
However, this time the move was to a country
in which the Long Beach State women’s volleyball
player had never before visited — with an
entirely different language and culture.
“I was really curious because as a foreigner
you’ve heard a lot about the United States,
so I thought wow let’s see what the Americans
are really like,” Doering said. “I didn’t
really have many expectations. I think that
when you have too many expectations then
you might be disappointed.”
Doering, a sophomore studying broadcast
journalism, was the first foreign player
recruited by the 49ers coaching staff.
In her first semester at LBSU, Doering has
quickly become one of the best players for
the volleyball team because of her size,
ability and versatility.
“She can do everything,” head coach Brian
Gimmillaro said. “She is 6-foot-2, and she
is still a very good defender, passer and
server.
“She can play all three positions in the
front row, left, middle, and right, so she
is very valuable.”
Doering along with fellow Germans Melanie
Fleig and Bulgarian Eva Tcholakova are the
three foreign-born players on this year’s
team, but Doering said that the presence
of Fleig and Tcholakova had nothing to do
with her decision to come The Beach.
“Actually I was a bit worried because if
there are two Germans, then of course the
two Germans speak German together and I
was afraid of becoming isolated, but I think
we are handling it pretty well,” Doering
said.
Coming from Germany, where volleyball is
one of the most played sports but soccer
receives the most attention, the change
has been refreshing for Doering.
“At a match for my home club there is maybe
200 people watching, so it is really amazing
to play here in front of 3,000 people,”
Doering said. “That is a new experience
and maybe the best thing about playing here.”
German schools do not field athletic teams,
so Doering played for the first division
German club team Bayern Lohhof while attending
Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich,
Germany, for two years.
Although she speaks and understands English
very well, Doering said the hardest thing
about her new situation is studying in a
foreign language.
Doering added that instructors are much
more personable in the United States, which
has made the transition a bit easier, and
joked that she can always claim that she
is a foreigner when she does something wrong.
The 22-year-old Doering is homesick at times
and is looking forward to visiting Munich
over the winter break, but said she enjoys
the company of her teammates who can divert
her attention from homesickness. Doering’s
teammates appreciate her company as well.
“She is probably one of the nicest people,
she is giving and she plays her heart out
every game,” teammate Lindsay Phillips said.
Gimmillaro said he also enjoys having Doering
on the team.
“I like having people from different places,
different states, different colors and different
geographic backgrounds,” Gimmill-aro said.
“I always find it to be very appealing.”
Due to her play and personality, Doering
will likely be a fixture on the nationally
ranked volleyball team in the future, and
she looks forward to her time at The Beach.
“I
want to help the team as much as I can,
be a good team player and play well,” Doering
said. “I want to improve in every match.”
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