Shannon Arts came to Sacramento State from Valdez, Alaska, with a dream of getting away from all the snow and fish.

The Hornets welcomed her to sunny California but she wanted to play basketball, not volleyball.

“My whole family played basketball, and when I first started playing volleyball I didn’t understand it at all,” Arts said. “But in Valdez there isn’t much to do other than play two sports. The more I played the more I liked it.”

The varsity coach at Valdez High School noticed the freshman’s talents and brought her up to the varsity level, where she played the rest of her career. But still Arts wanted to get out of the frozen tundra.

“Colleges in Alaska don’t offer as many opportunities. I came out to California during a volleyball festival,” Arts said. “That was when I knew I wanted to come back to California for college.”

During her senior year as a Buccaneer at Valdez High, Arts sent out letters of interest to several Div. I schools across the country. In a town of 4,000 people, she had to promote herself. It was Hornets head coach Debby Colberg who saw the unrefined potential in Arts.

“She sent me a CD with some video of her,” Colberg said. “But it only came up as a tiny window on my computer. She seemed very unpolished and inexperienced, but she peaked my interest. I had to see her play in person.”

There was a slight catch. Volleyball season was over in Alaska, but Arts still played club games a few times during the week. Colberg still arranged a flight to Alaska and got an opportunity to see the six-footer in action.

“I think the whole town came out that night to give Shannon plenty of support,” Colberg said.

In the summer of 2002, Arts became the newest addition to the Hornets lineup.

Arts has developed her game every year since then. The first Alaskan native to play volleyball at Sac State really turns up the heat in the post season at the Big Sky Tournament.

Most recently Arts helped the Hornets fly through the 2005 Big Sky tournament, scoring a fourth-straight conference crown. In the last four games of the season, including the conference tournament, Arts has averaged 8.5 kills with a hitting percentage of .323 and 1.2 blocks per match.

Since being added to the roster, Arts has added a dimension of silent strength and toughness to the team.

“She’s a very genuine person. She does what she’s supposed to,” Colberg said. “Last spring she sprained an ankle during a game and continued to play. The next day her ankle was huge, but she just taped it and showed up to practice.”

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Brad Alexander can be reached at [email protected]