StarTrib: Stephanie Samedy Dominant

Ignatius L Hoops

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http://www.startribune.com/dominant...reer-having-her-way-with-opponents/446487653/


Gregory Gym in Austin, Texas, roared on a Friday night earlier this month with over 4,000 fans on their feet during player introductions that sounded more like a WWE main event than a volleyball match.

Gophers coach Hugh McCutcheon wore a pre-opening set grin in appreciation for the intense atmosphere. This is exactly the type of feature nonconference matchup that he hopes prepares Minnesota for the upcoming Big Ten grind.

The Texas Longhorns thought they had an advantage that night, even against the nation’s No. 1 team.

But they never faced Stephanie Samedy.

After watching their team lose the first set, the raucous crowd grew faint. ESPN analyst Nell Fortner was already drooling over the play of Samedy, the Gophers freshman opposite hitter from Clermont, Fla.

“She’s playing well beyond her years,” Fortner beamed on the telecast. “Samedy is having her way with the Longhorns.”...

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Samedy’s high school coach Mayra Cuebas said her former star player’s impact is also still being seen in the Lake County area and her hometown of Clermont, which is 22 miles west of Orlando.

There were only a couple players in Clermont competing in club volleyball before Samedy made Team USA and won Florida Gatorade Player of the Year awards her final two seasons.

“I heard parents say, ‘I want to put my daughter in club because I saw how Stephanie improved her game so quickly in club.’ ” Cuebas said. “I think she set an example. She put our school (East Ridge) and the sport on the map for us.”
 




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