Texas Tech University Athletics
Akiu Set to Train with USA Volleyball in Minneapolis
June 21, 2017 | Women's Volleyball
The junior defensive specialist is one of 36 players who were selected to take part in the program.
From the shores of Honolulu, Hawaii, to United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, junior Tita Akiu has always had an ample supply of one thing: passion.
That passion has enabled her to achieve several accomplishments throughout her volleyball career. She was a three-year varsity starter for her high school in Hawaii and a 2011 AAU Regional Champion and Tournament MVP. After playing in all 30 matches during her freshman season at Texas Tech, she posted the second-highest individual dig total for a single season with 547 digs in her sophomore season, her first year as a full-time starter.
This week, her volleyball career hits another milestone as she is one of 36 players from across the country that will head to Minneapolis to train and compete as part of the U.S. Collegiate National Team-Minneapolis (CNT-Minneapolis) program.
The CNT-Minneapolis squad, which is part of USA Volleyball's High Performance pipeline and is considered a second tryout for the U.S. Women's National Team, will train from June 22-26 at the University of Minnesota. Afterward, the athletes will be assigned to one of three 12-member teams and compete in a round-robin format at the Minneapolis Convention Center from June 27-30. The matches are being held in conjunction with the USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships under the same roof.
Akiu is one of two Big 12 representatives traveling to Minnesota and one of only two players from the state of Texas, joining Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's Kristyn Nicholson, who was coached by Texas Tech head coach Tony Graystone at TAMUCC prior to his arrival at Tech.
"We are so very proud of Tita and know she will have a great week in Minneapolis," Graystone said. "This is a tremendous accomplishment and speaks to both her talent and the time she's spent working to become one of the best liberos in college volleyball. Everyone in our program gets to see every day how good Tita is, and I'm excited for her to have the opportunity to play at this next level. I can't think of anyone better to represent the Red Raiders."
That passion has enabled her to achieve several accomplishments throughout her volleyball career. She was a three-year varsity starter for her high school in Hawaii and a 2011 AAU Regional Champion and Tournament MVP. After playing in all 30 matches during her freshman season at Texas Tech, she posted the second-highest individual dig total for a single season with 547 digs in her sophomore season, her first year as a full-time starter.
This week, her volleyball career hits another milestone as she is one of 36 players from across the country that will head to Minneapolis to train and compete as part of the U.S. Collegiate National Team-Minneapolis (CNT-Minneapolis) program.
The CNT-Minneapolis squad, which is part of USA Volleyball's High Performance pipeline and is considered a second tryout for the U.S. Women's National Team, will train from June 22-26 at the University of Minnesota. Afterward, the athletes will be assigned to one of three 12-member teams and compete in a round-robin format at the Minneapolis Convention Center from June 27-30. The matches are being held in conjunction with the USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships under the same roof.
Akiu is one of two Big 12 representatives traveling to Minnesota and one of only two players from the state of Texas, joining Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's Kristyn Nicholson, who was coached by Texas Tech head coach Tony Graystone at TAMUCC prior to his arrival at Tech.
"We are so very proud of Tita and know she will have a great week in Minneapolis," Graystone said. "This is a tremendous accomplishment and speaks to both her talent and the time she's spent working to become one of the best liberos in college volleyball. Everyone in our program gets to see every day how good Tita is, and I'm excited for her to have the opportunity to play at this next level. I can't think of anyone better to represent the Red Raiders."
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