Jolie Rasmussen’s return bolsters Hawaii volleyball team for NCAA tournament run By Cindy Luis
12/13/19
Honolulu Star-Advertiser
ANDREW LEE / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER
Hawaii’s Jolie Rasmussen came up with a dig during a victory against Washington on Sept. 1 at the Stan Sheriff Center. It was hard, not knowing.
Hard not knowing WHEN. Harder, still, not knowing IF.
It was 85 days of uncertainty for Jolie Rasmussen. Just over 12 weeks. Three-fifths of September, all of October and November, and through the eve of St. Nicholas.
Not that anyone else needed to be counting. The Rainbow Wahine redshirt junior outside hitter did plenty of that from the time she severely sprained her right ankle on Sept. 12 with Hawaii leading West Virginia 6-3 in Set 3 to the time she heard Wahine coach Robyn Ah Mow call down the Stan Sheriff Center sideline with a “Hey, are you ready?” before the start of Set 3 of the Dec. 6 NCAA first-round match against Northern Colorado.
That match against the Bears was tied 1-1, each team having won a set 26-24. But, as far as the crowd was concerned, it was over.
Rasmussen, the Wahine’s kill leader until her injury, was back.
“It was so exciting to be in,” said Rasmussen, who replaced freshman Hannah Hellvig in the lineup for the final two sets. “It felt good that Robyn gave me the opportunity to play.
“I knew our team had it (the win). They’re the reason why we’ve gotten this far. But it’s humbling that (Ah Mow) trusted in me and I was able to give a little bit boost of energy.”
Rasmussen, officially transferring from Oregon last Christmas Day, had quickly become a fan favorite, beginning with the spring exhibition match against Texas.
Rasmussen had match-highs of 28 kills and 21 digs, hitting .377, in the five-set loss to the Longhorns. It continued in the opening week of the season where she helped Hawaii win its first signature Hawaiian Airlines Classic since 2013 with victories over No. 21 San Diego, St. John’s and No. 13 Washington.
The 6-foot-2 California native earned MVP honors after a combined 55 kills, 17 digs and 13 blocks — five solo. A day later, she picked up the season’s inaugural player of the week award from the Big West followed by the national POW honor, the ninth for a Wahine and first since Nikki Taylor in 2016.
Things were going so well for Hawaii. It was a team that had gelled surprisingly quickly with nine newcomers, including five freshmen, so quickly that some wondered if the Wahine were peaking too early.
There was a different vibe from Ah Mow’s first two seasons, energetic and electrified.
Things changed somewhat seven matches in when Rasmussen and Mountaineer Briana Lynch tangled feet under the net, Rasmussen rolling her right ankle, the one that been sprained several times before. Rasmussen knew almost immediately what the recovery process was going to be. She had been through it before.
“It was a long process, physically, emotionally and mentally,” Rasmussen said. “Through it all I’ve grown as a person, learned a lot about myself.
“It was two steps forward, one step back. My teammates always had faith, working hard to do the volleyball side. They and the coaches said focus on yourself, get healthy, we want you back but get healthy first. I never felt any pressure to come back too soon.”
Rasmussen did think it would be sooner. But dates to reach certain progress levels came and went.
“It wasn’t responding the way we wanted,” said Rasmussen, spending hours with trainer Renae Shigemura and other staffers. “It was a battle but you take it one day at a time and keep getting better.
“It was exciting when you get the all clear. All you want to do is be on the court.”
That was a gradual process as well, with limits on how much could be done. Cleared to participate partially in practice, cleared to fully participate then cleared to play just in time for the NCAA first round.
Hawaii had done well without her, winning the Big West, losing just three times, with an 11-match win streak that has since been extended to 13 after Rasmussen returned. But, as is often attributed to Aristotle on synergy, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”
“We felt whole again,” Ah Mow said. “Jolie coming back … it’s full circle from when we started.”
“To us, Jolie has always been there,” freshman middle Amber Igiede said. “She’s a leader, someone I looked up to from the beginning. She works hard, on and off the court, and it was almost like she was on the court with us with the energy she had when she was out.
“Now we feel that wholeness even more.”
Rasmussen was a two-time All-Pac-12 honorable mention at Oregon, her second award coming in 2017 despite missing the first 12 matches with an injury. She sat out last season with a medical redshirt and, on Dec. 9, 2018 — a year to the day that Hawaii held its final practice at home — she told Ducks coach Matt Ulmer she was putting her name in the NCAA transfer portal.
“It is crazy to think that one year ago I was so lost and confused,” she said. “I was at a crossroads in my future and didn’t know where it led to.
“Now I’m with a team with 20 people who are sharing a purpose and goal. We’re all taking steps together as one. Wow. Change is real and you can make it happen.”
This is the third NCAA tournament for Rasmussen and the farthest she’s been. Oregon was eliminated in the second round at Michigan in 2016 and at BYU in 2017.
No. 18 Hawaii (26-3) faces No. 6 Nebraska (27-4) here today in the third round at the UW Fieldhouse. The Wahine last reached the third round in 2015, defeating Penn State.
“Nebraska is a very good team, it will be a battle,” said Rasmussen, who played in Set 3 of the second-round win over San Diego last Saturday. “Whatever my role is, I’ll do everything I can to help.
“We’re all in it to win it. We have the tools. It’s up to us whether or not we take it.”
CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM
Hawaii’s Jolie Rasmussen soared for a kill against Denver on Sept. 8. She suffered an ankle injury in UH’s next match and missed the next 20 before returning for the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Video by Cindy Luis / cluis@staradvertiser.com
The Rainbow Wahine volleyball team is in Madison, Wis., for Friday's NCAA tournament regional against Nebraska.
