This season brought this student athlete new challenges. Cal State Northridge Matador middle blocker Morgan Salone was moved to the outside blocker position.
“It’s a really big change,” Salone said. “It’s taking me time to adjust to what I have to do.”
Despite the position change, Salone has been able to keep the Matadors competitive throughout the season. She finished the season with 34 kills, 1.70 kills per set, and 1.87 points per set.
“I can’t put myself down at anytime because then that’s when I really get in my head,” Salone said. “I’m an outside and just working hard for my team, doing what I can and trying to just do my best.”
Salone had a career game against Long Beach State in September when she scored 17 kills and 17 points. It contributed to the 41 team kills that helped CSUN defeat Cal State Long Beach 3-1.
“I think that was a really good game for us,” Salone said. “It really gave us that push that we needed.”
In October, Salone made a season high of four digs in a 3-2 win over UC Davis. She came in second in kills for the Matadors with 13 during the matchup.
The sophomore has plans of becoming a kinesiology major with a 3.0 GPA. Her favorite class that she took is a psychology course.
“My psychology class has been really interesting,” Salone said. “I’ve always been interested in the brain.”
As a freshmen, Salone landed 94 season kills and 1.32 kills per set. During a game against Cal Poly, she made a season high of eight blocks. With 46 season blocks, Salone came in second on the team in that category.
Growing up, Salone also played soccer and basketball. Volleyball became more enjoyable to her as she played at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Eastvale, CA. She attributes Patti Zarate, her high school coach, and her parents for keeping her motivated in the sport.
“She really pushed me to play volleyball in college and play in high school and even club [volleyball],” Salone said about Zarate. “She helped me get a club.”
Salone visits a local school along with the Matadors women’s volleyball team to read to young students.
“The kids would come up to us and they’ll have three books in their hand,” she said. “We’ll ask them ‘which one do you want me to read to you?’ and then, they’ll choose one and then we read to them. It’s pretty fun.”
Salone’s advice to young athletes is to do their part on the court to help contribute to the team’s success. She noted how one coach would tell her and her team how each player needs to get three kills and blocks in each game.
“Just make sure that you’re doing all that you can do,” Salone said. “She said ‘three kills, three blocks and if you have that, we’re more likely to win the game than lose.’”
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