Three years ago, Megan Wallin made a long trip from the sunny state of Florida to the harsh climate of mid-Michigan in hopes of continuing her volleyball career.
The sophomore middle is quickly becoming a premier player on a top 25 team - something she wasn't expected to do this early in her career.
A standout at Cardinal-Mooney High School in Sarasota, Fla., Wallin led her team to a third-place finish her junior year and a second-place finish as a senior in 2000. Both years, she was selected to the Florida All-State first team. She was an all-around athlete - the State of Florida's high-jump champion and captain of her basketball team her senior year.
Wallin came to MSU ready to play, but with numerous players ahead of her in the middle position, head coach Chuck Erbe decided to redshirt her in 2001. The redshirt year gave Wallin time to not only get acclimated to her new surroundings, but to work on her game.
"I was what they call a raw player," Wallin said. "I was goofy-footed and all turned around. After a year and a half, I was finally able to re-adjust to the new level of play and college."
Redshirt years are beneficial to players who are raw and need to polish their play. This was true for Wallin, who is quickly becoming one of MSU's better players in her second season on the court.
Standing 6-foot-3, Wallin is MSU's tallest player when she mans the middle for the Spartans. She started the season on the bench, backing up preseason All-Big Ten selection and senior Jenny Rood, but began starting midway though the season because of her toughness.
"The thing that separates Megan from so many athletes is her competitive attitude," Erbe said. "She is one of the most highly competitive kids I have ever coached.
"She is still in some respects a raw player. Not as raw as she was, but she makes up for that in tenacious competitiveness, almost bordering on combativeness. That is a rare quality to see in a female athlete."
Wallin's drive helps her play to the level she needs to as a Big Ten volleyball player. There are times her fierceness is out for everyone to see, most notably when she jumps up to kill balls and a scowl covers her face - an expression that bodes ill for her opponents.
Wallin's spirit also has rubbed off on other players and they know she is going to bring that attitude.
"She's the competitor on the team and no one can shake her," sophomore Brooke Langston said. "That's really helped me to focus in on playing volleyball and having fun."
Through the ups and downs this season, Wallin has never complained about the team's play. After losses, she sits stern and proud, showing leadership beyond her years and talking about what she expects out of her team.
"Her family gave her an incredible set of values and work ethic," Erbe said. "She never complains and always demands the most out of herself. She comes into work every day and brings her lunch pail."
Wallin's inexperience is dwindling as she becomes a more skilled and versatile player. Outside of her great work ethic, she has been learning the tricks of the trade from Rood.
Rood has worked with Wallin on her foot work, blocking, hitting and all other "musts" to be an effective middle.
"(Rood) is a role model and a very good teacher," Wallin said. "She can explain how to do it and then show you how as well. I'm learning how to be more technical from her."
With two seasons left, Wallin is following in Rood's footsteps and is quickly proving capable of handling the week in, week out, duties of playing the middle for the MSU volleyball team.
