Having been an integral part of DU’s success the past three seasons, senior volleyball player Lisa Hunter has now taken over the leadership role for a young, inexperienced Pioneer team.
Hunter, the lone senior on the Pioneer roster this season, will bring her experience of three outstanding seasons at DU to a team that has eight players that are underclassmen.
With the added pressure, Hunter has been impressive this season, leading the Pioneers with 311 kills, 4.09 kills per game, and 21 service aces.
While the Pioneers are just hovering over the .500 mark, with an 11-9 record, 4-4 in Sun Belt Conference play, Hunter is positive about her team’s play and potential.
“We are a young team, but have a lot of talent,” Hunter said. “If we can get mentally stronger, I think we could be really good.”
Success would be nothing new to Hunter, whose high school team rose as high as No. 22 nationally during her senior season at Cor Jesu Academy in St. Louis, Mo.
Hunter, one of only four athletes to ever have their jersey retired at Cor Jesu Academy, was an All-American selection her senior season as well as being named the Missouri Gatorade Player of the Year in 2002.
All of these personal accolades opened many doors for Hunter, as she was highly recruited out of high school before choosing DU.
“For me, I think that it was my visit,” said Hunter of why she chose to become a Pioneer. “The coaches were just great and I really liked the team.”
Hunter wasted little time in making her presence felt in college volleyball, as she had one of the most outstanding freshman seasons in DU history. She led the team in nearly every statistical category, including kills, kills per game and service aces.
Hunter was named the SBC Freshman of the Year for her incredible rookie campaign.
After being named preseason All-SBC before her sophomore season, Hunter’s year was cut short when she broke her hand in late September. She was forced to miss 12 matches, before returning for the final five of the season.
Despite missing out on some action, Hunter was fourth in the SBC and first on the team with 4.18 kills per game on the season.
Once again healthy, Hunter had a strong junior season. She finished second in the SBC in kills per game, tied a school record with 27 kills in a match against Arkansas-Little Rock and was named to the All-SBC First Team.
Though Hunter has seen a lot of success so far at DU, she feels that this year’s team could have a chance to do things that the Pioneers have been unable to so far during Hunter’s career, make it to the NCAA tournament.
“We could really go far this year,” said Hunter. “Our goal is definitely to win our conference tournament. If we could do that and make it to the NCAA tourney that would be awesome.”
Hunter, who has been playing volleyball since she was in fourth grade, said that this is one of the closest teams that she has played on, and that that closeness will play a big part in their success.
“I feel that we are a really close group, and that really helps us in games,” said Hunter of her young team. “If we can just start to close out games better, we could be really good.”
After her career is over at DU, Hunter hopes to be able to play on the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) Tour, partnering with her older sister in beach volleyball.
Though Hunter may be remembered most for her exceptional play while at DU, her accomplishments are not what she will remember most.
“I think that I will always just remember the girls that I played with over the years,” Hunter said. “All the teams I have played on have been so close and I don’t think I could ever forget them, or the times that we’ve had. It’s all just been awesome.”
