Boston College Athletics
Amaka Makes Her Mark
October 23, 2017 | Volleyball
The freshman middle blocker broke the single match attack percentage this season.
Diligent. That's the word that Boston College volleyball head coach Chris Campbell chose when asked to describe freshman middle blocker Amaka Chukwujekwu during a weekly press conference.
"She's a very diligent learner, pays attention to practice, works hard to understand what's being asked of her rather than just blindly going through reps," said Campbell. "She's very mindful in her way of going about practice, so the training improvements that she's made have come as no surprise."
Making the transition as a collegiate athlete isn't always easy due to the speed of volleyball on a higher level, but Chukwujekwu came in knowing what she needed to do.
"My goal was to get better and play a faster game because, in high school, it was always a slower pace," she said. "Getting here, I had to really adapt to the pace of college ball. I think it's going great. I'm actually really surprised because it's going better than I expected."
The Laurel, Md. native listed her other accomplishment thus far as growing to be a better all-around player, believing to have made the most progress on her hitting.
Putting in time during practice, and being cognizant while doing so, has reaped rewards. Sunday, Oct. 15, while hosting Pittsburgh in Chestnut Hill, Chukwujekwu broke the single match individual attack percentage record after producing a .846 hitting percentage off of 11 kills, 13 total attempts and no errors on the night.
When asked about the accomplishment, Chukwujekwu credited the work she's put in during practices. "Hard work really pays off, I guess would be a good way to say it. We've been working so much with middles and setting connection and figuring out my timing and spacing for everything. For it to finally click and break a record is really exciting."
And breaking the record as a freshman? "Even more exciting. I didn't really expect that."
Acknowledgement of setting connection was something that Campbell spoke to, as well. "Every kill you get in the middle is such a timing play that both the setter and the hitter and certainly the passing required to do it – they all play a part. But Amaka's worked hard."
Sophomore middle blocker Sophie West is the eldest on the team in the middle blocker position and provides Chukwujekwu with advice when possible. "During practice when we're hitting, she gives me a lot of feedback, like opening up and keeping my spacing," said Chukwujekwu. "It's really helpful and helps me focus more on what I'm doing."
West's role plays into the holistic team chemistry that the Eagles have, and Chukwujekwu acknowledges that as a part of her success in this early stage. "Everyone's really open," Chukwujekwu said. "It makes the team feel cohesive."
"She's just been very diligent and, each step of the way, she's very focused on what she's doing," said coach Campbell, using that work again – diligent. "It's not a huge surprise. It's certainly very exciting for the future but we've got to continue her on the same path that she's on now."
"She's a very diligent learner, pays attention to practice, works hard to understand what's being asked of her rather than just blindly going through reps," said Campbell. "She's very mindful in her way of going about practice, so the training improvements that she's made have come as no surprise."
Making the transition as a collegiate athlete isn't always easy due to the speed of volleyball on a higher level, but Chukwujekwu came in knowing what she needed to do.
"My goal was to get better and play a faster game because, in high school, it was always a slower pace," she said. "Getting here, I had to really adapt to the pace of college ball. I think it's going great. I'm actually really surprised because it's going better than I expected."
The Laurel, Md. native listed her other accomplishment thus far as growing to be a better all-around player, believing to have made the most progress on her hitting.
Putting in time during practice, and being cognizant while doing so, has reaped rewards. Sunday, Oct. 15, while hosting Pittsburgh in Chestnut Hill, Chukwujekwu broke the single match individual attack percentage record after producing a .846 hitting percentage off of 11 kills, 13 total attempts and no errors on the night.
When asked about the accomplishment, Chukwujekwu credited the work she's put in during practices. "Hard work really pays off, I guess would be a good way to say it. We've been working so much with middles and setting connection and figuring out my timing and spacing for everything. For it to finally click and break a record is really exciting."
And breaking the record as a freshman? "Even more exciting. I didn't really expect that."
Acknowledgement of setting connection was something that Campbell spoke to, as well. "Every kill you get in the middle is such a timing play that both the setter and the hitter and certainly the passing required to do it – they all play a part. But Amaka's worked hard."
Sophomore middle blocker Sophie West is the eldest on the team in the middle blocker position and provides Chukwujekwu with advice when possible. "During practice when we're hitting, she gives me a lot of feedback, like opening up and keeping my spacing," said Chukwujekwu. "It's really helpful and helps me focus more on what I'm doing."
West's role plays into the holistic team chemistry that the Eagles have, and Chukwujekwu acknowledges that as a part of her success in this early stage. "Everyone's really open," Chukwujekwu said. "It makes the team feel cohesive."
"She's just been very diligent and, each step of the way, she's very focused on what she's doing," said coach Campbell, using that work again – diligent. "It's not a huge surprise. It's certainly very exciting for the future but we've got to continue her on the same path that she's on now."
Players Mentioned
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