College Athlete of the Week: Maureen Frauenholtz

College athlete of the week

Player: Maureen Frauenholtz

Year, school: Senior, Carroll (Mont.) College

Sport: Volleyball

Hometown: Everett (Everett High School)

What she did: Had 16 digs in regular-season finale win over Montana State-Northern, helping the 23rd-ranked Saints (18-8) earn their first bid to the NAIA national tournament in nearly two decades.

What’s next: Frauenholtz and the Saints will face No. 2 College of Idaho (23-2) in a first-round tournament match this Saturday.

Two-minute drill

You had a match-high 16 digs in Saturday’s regular-season-ending win over Montana State-Northern last week. Is that your favorite part of volleyball: the rally-saving dig?

I think so. My favorite part is getting a crucial dig at one of the crucial points of the game, then having a teammate put it away. It makes me happy when you work so hard to keep the point alive, and then you win the point. So that’s one of my favorite parts — and blocking, too.

You finished third in the Frontier Conference in digs this season, with 422. You must have a lot of bruises.

Yes, absolutely. More than I’ve ever had. In high school, I was an outside hitter, so I didn’t get this bruised. They’re totally worth it. Every single one is worth it. To go to the national tournament, it’s totally worth it.

So now that you know you’re in the tournament, what’s next?

Our first match is in Nampa, Idaho. We play the College of Idaho. We leave at 6 a.m. (today). They’re good, but you have to be at this level. We’re ready. It’s our first time at nationals since 1992. It’s been a long, long time. We have two of the top 10 teams in the country in our conference (the Frontier Conference), so that’s been tough. But we’re ready for that kind of competition.

How did you find out that you’d been selected?

I found out on Sunday (one day after getting knocked out in the semifinal round of the Frontier Conference tournament). My coach called one of my roommates; it was in the morning. She was like, ‘Oh my gosh, why is Coach calling me?’ Then she found out, and we all started screaming and jumping up and down. It was an awesome feeling. Saturday was devastating because I felt like the season was over, for the most part. There were tears and all that. I don’t feel silly for crying, but now I’m back on board. It’s like we’ve got this second life.

So it’s already hit you yet that your career is coming to an end?

After feeling the way I felt on Saturday, when it could have potentially been my last match, that was devastating for me. So I want to go out and play harder than I’ve ever played before. Even though it could be potentially over, I want so, so bad to go to the next round. If we win, we get to go to Iowa. That would be so, so great.

No one’s ever been that excited about going to Iowa.

I know, right? Iowa. But it’s what it is.

So when your career is over, are you kind of looking forward to no longer being considered a 5-foot-7 ‘short’ girl?

Yes, I know. I come over to Helena, and I’m a short girl. But in Everett, all my friends are shorter than me. I’m surrounded by 6-foot athletes. It’s definitely different here.

Will you still play volleyball after college?

I definitely want to keep pursuing the sport; I know that. I’m definitely going to coach. I’ve been a coach before. It’s been a passion of mine, and I know the game well. I want to be a PE teacher as well.

What exactly does a PE teacher do? Do you teach bombardament and dodgeball?

It depends on where the job is. But you teach all-around wellness. How to be physically fit and eat well. It’s kind of different from the old days. They’re incorporating other things into it. The obesity rate’s going up, you know, so we have to do something.

That’s pretty different than it was back in my day.

When I took PE, it was all about sports — basketball and all the other sports. We still teach all those, but some kids don’t love sports. So we incorporate other things and still have fun with it. Now, kids aren’t worried about being left out.

You used to be a coach/instructor at the Everett Boys &Girls Club. What was that like?

I coached at the Boys &Girls Club when I was a sophomore, junior and senior in high school. I taught volleyball to third-, fourth-, and fifth-graders. It was great. It was totally volunteer. I got to express my knowledge and teach the game I knew so well. I didn’t want to stop coaching. My freshman year (at Carroll), I taught 18 year-olds on a club team, and I was only 19. Then I coached 16-year-olds the next year, and 16-year-olds the year after that. Yeah, at the Boys &Girls Club, it was definitely a lot of fun. I played there too, so I wanted to give back.

On the 18-year-old club team, were the girls looking at you like: ‘Who are you? You’re practically my age’?

Yeah, they were like: ‘You’re only a year-and-a-half older than me.’ But I was like: ‘Yeah, but I’m still a lot better. So what’s that tell you?’ Just kidding. In Helena, club volleyball is really, really new. I played since I was 14 years old, and that doesn’t happen around here. I told them to come out and see me play. And they realized: OK, she knows what she’s talking about. All the kids definitely improved. That’s all I wanted. That’s what you get into it for.

Have you kept up with any of the kids, and did any of them go on to become athletes?

Yes, absolutely. I coached third-, fourth-, and fifth-graders, and they’re obviously older now. Lauren Stiger plays at Everett High School now, and I’m still in touch with her. There are a lot of people I still know at Everett High. It’s fun to watch them grow and love the sport like I do. I love that I was a part of that.

Lauren Stiger … could she take you now?

I know she’s a lot taller than I am. She’s definitely a lot taller than she was in third, fourth and fifth grades. I’ve kept tabs on her. She’s done really, really well. I knew her older brother Andrew, who was in my class. She definitely could take me, now that I think about it. I’d love to be back on the court with her.

You know, Jon Brockman was out volunteering at the Boys &Girls Club this week. So does that mean you’re the second greatest athlete to ever be there?

(Laughs) I don’t know. I don’t know about that part.

Could you take him?

Probably. I’ll say yes. Definitely, I could probably teach him a thing or two. (Laughs) Just kidding.