To help out the new coaching staff for the Hornets’ women’s volleyball team this season, senior setter Rose Burke has come back as the only returning starting player. Through the years, she has brought a lot to this team as a person and as a player, according to the coaches and fellow players.

“As a player, she is very competitive and plays with a lot of energy. She is a big part of our offense and decides who to set to,” said new head coach Ruben Volta.

But, off the court the coach thinks she shines as well.

“She has a nice personality and is very friendly,” Volta said.

The coach’s favorite story of Burke happened last year. Every year the team is broken up into its classes from freshmen to senior and each class makes up its own rendition of the Hornet fight song. Burke and senior opposite hitter Brittany Ferguson decided to do a rock’n’roll version of the song and Burke got so into it that she started playing the air guitar, according to Volta.

Burke was a little apprehensive in the beginning of the fight song and then she started to get into it, according to fellow junior setter Melissa Melcher.

“She’s not afraid to be crazy,” Melcher said.

Melcher has the same view of Burke as Volta does and feels she is a very hard worker.

“She is a determined player and works her butt off all the time. She leads by example and gets very excited and energetic during the games, which helps motivate the team,” Melcher said.

Melcher did explain that when she first met Burke, she was a little cautious, but is now great friends with her.

“When you first meet her, she’s a little intimidating. But, when she opens up to you, she really cares about you and is a great friend,” Melcher said.

Not only is Burke a great player, but also she is a role model and helps keep Melcher motivated.

“We keep each other competitive. It’s nice to have her to look up to as a player and a friend,” Melcher said.

Debbie Colberg was the head coach for this team last year and has been able to see Burke improve through the years.

“As a player, Rose has had to draw on all her abilities to develop into a good Division I setter. She lacks foot speed which is commonly one of the important attributes of a setter, but she has compensated by taking a quick first step and being determined to chase down balls,” said Colberg.

Colberg also remembers Burke as a happy-go-lucky kind of person, which showed in everything she did.

“As a person, the first adjectives that come to mind are happy and independent. She has a mind of her own, a good sense of humor, and seems to enjoy life in general,” Colberg said.

Colberg always admired how Burke could take criticism given to her so she could realize what she needed to improve on.

“She has many nice qualities, but as an athlete, she has been able to take coaching (and criticism) and adjust her performance accordingly. I feel like she operates well under pressure which is crucial for the setting position,” said Colberg. “My hope for her is that she will be instrumental in teaching the new Hornets how to practice and compete.”

Ferguson described Burke as being very straightforward and to the point, which helps the players improve on the court by telling them what they did wrong and how to improve.

“As a player she will give it to you exactly how it is. If you don’t hit the ball hard, she’ll tell you and encourage you to do better. She’s been like that since she was a freshman,” Ferguson said.

Burke and Ferguson share a sense of connection because they both have come far from home to play volleyball here. Burke’s hometown is Gainesville, Fla. and Ferguson is from Strathmore, Alberta Canada. Each of them has had to deal with missing their families, according to Ferguson.

“We’ve helped each other out. She is such a caring and motivating person that just drives you,” Ferguson said.

But one thing Burke was confused about when she came to California, according to Ferguson, is that she couldn’t believe there weren’t any crocodiles here. Ferguson said that Burke was so used to seeing them in Florida that she assumed there would be some here as well.

This Florida native has grown up watching her family play volleyball and decided to carry on that legacy.

“When I was a little child in a play pen, my mom used to bring me and my sister to her volleyball games. So, I was exposed to volleyball from an early age and that’s basically what started it,” Burke said.

Sometimes she likes variety when she plays volleyball and loves to play outside.

“I play more beach volleyball when I’m at home in Florida. I play more grass when I’m here in California. But, I definitely enjoy playing outdoors as well as indoors,” Burke said.

When Burke is not playing volleyball, she loves to read and rock out to a game of “Rock Band” with her friends.

“I play all of (Rock Band): drums, guitar and sing,” said Burke.

Her major is liberal studies and she hopes to become a high school math teacher someday and possibly travel to different countries like Africa, Japan and even China to teach.

“I love math and I had two really good high school math teachers. They have inspired me,” Burke said.

Burke has a lot of confidence in the new coaching staff this season and came back to the team because of the new head coach.

“Having Ruben as a head coach definitely motivated me (to come back) and I think he is doing just as good a job as Debbie did. And I love Weidi and I think Sarah is great. So, I love the coaching staff here,” Burke said.

Burke has high hopes for this team and is confident in the new girls to do great as well.

“I really am looking forward to the season and playing with the girls who have worked really hard and haven’t gotten their chance (to play) yet. We definitely have glimmers of greatness in us and I believe by the end of the season we will find that,” said Burke.

Taylor Collis can be reached at [email protected]