Over the years Pepperdine has garnered a reputation for welcoming in and turning out scores of high-performing male and female athletes. Many of these former Waves have taken their careers one step further by going pro fulfilling the dream so many fantasize about but only an elite class of gifted athletes will ever achieve.
Senior Paul Carroll Australian native and starting opposite hitter for the Pepperdine men’s volleyball team will have his chance to join this exclusive club after he graduates in April. However he has already reached an extraordinary plateau – he can definitively say he is his nation’s best player at his sport.
In October Carroll received the 2008 Ted Kalkhoven Award for Australia’s Top Male Player following an impressive run with the Australian National Team that included an Asian Championship crown and World Cup appearance in 2007. Although the team finished eighth in the World Cup Carroll left his mark by compiling 183 kills second highest of all players in the tournament.
“That as a volleyball player was probably one of my best experiences Carroll said. To play 11 matches in a row against the best players in the world … We came in [eighth] but it was a good stepping stone and a really good experience.”
As a teenager Carroll said he looked up to the players on the Australian National Team unaware that he would one day represent Australia alongside some of his heroes. As professional volleyball players do not generally wrap up their careers until about age 40 many of the stars Carroll and his brothers admired during his teens are still active.
“We always used to idolize the guys on the Australian National Team Carroll said. And those guys that are still on it now that I remember when I was young, I would go up and get their autograph. It’s pretty amazing to get to play with those guys.
But when Carroll isn’t playing for his country during the summer he is lighting up the box score for Pepperdine – and earning a business degree in the process.
He said he could have chosen to play professionally in Europe straight out of high school but he opted to come to America and receive an education in addition to playing volleyball.
“I’ve seen a lot of guys go straight to Europe Carroll said. They just get burnt out physically. You’re getting paid by the month. There’s money in volleyball but there’s not that much. So if they’re paying you money they expect to get as much out of you as they can.”
Like many of his teammates Carroll came to Pepperdine primarily to play under Marv Dunphy Olympic gold medalist and owner of four national titles as head coach of the Waves.
“He just has so much experience Carroll said. I heard great things about him heard good things about the school. I was choosing between here and Hawaii and Marv kind of sold it.” Carroll’s long list of accolades as a Wave include a pair of All-American selections four American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) National Player of the Week awards and two All-MPSF first team selections. In 2008 he was the NCAA’s leader in kills (6.54) and points (7.56) per game.
But Carroll said nothing else in his college career has compared to the team’s remarkable postseason run last year. Heading into the MPSF playoffs as a fifth seed Carroll and his teammates exceeded expectations to topple UCLA Long Beach and BYU and win the conference.
Unfortunately the team came up short in the final round of the NCAA Championships falling to top-ranked Penn State in four games. But Carroll said he was still proud of the way the team fought until the end.
“It was disappointing that we couldn’t finish it off and win the championship but it was a really good run for us he said. That’s a credit to the coaching staff that we have to get us peaking at the right time.”
Carroll said he has gained invaluable experience playing with both the Australian National Team and Pepperdine. Many of the leadership traits he picked up in Australia he has been able to carry over to his team in Malibu.
“The major difference between there and here is that on the Australian team I’m one of the youngest players and here I’m one of the older players he said. So it’s a good combination for me … to be there to learn off those guys and to be on the Pepperdine team to develop leadership skills. The things I learn from playing with the Australian team I use on the Pepperdine team.”
According to senior outside hitter J.D. Schleppenbach Carroll does not need a large vocal presence to motivate his teammates; his leadership tendencies lie solely in his ability to quietly and confidently go about his business during matches. “On the court he’s vocal but he’s more elite in the way he plays a lot of the times Schleppenbach said. [He’s] kind of a quiet confident guy on the court … He’s able to bring his leadership in more of a playing way instead of a vocal way.”
Dunphy said he has enjoyed watching Carroll mature both as a player and as a student within the past four years.
“What I’m pleased with is that he’s doing real well with his degree and he’s on time with a good GPA Dunphy said. I think he’s getting a lot out of the school too; it’s not just volleyball.”
When it comes to academics Carroll said he has developed an interest in the stock market during his time at Pepperdine and might seek out a profession in a related field 10 or 15 years down the line. But until then there is a wealth of opportunities for him to play professionally in Europe – something he is grateful for especially with the current economic climate. Dunphy said he believes Carroll has the right tools to play professionally for many years to come.
“I think he can have a long career in the sport because he doesn’t rely just upon his jump or just his arm Dunphy said. He has the skills to play the game too. I see a bright future for him.”
After he is done playing professional volleyball however Carroll said he will have some big decisions to make with his life. With personal connections in both the United States and Australia Carroll will be torn between returning to the country of his birth or to the place where he received an education and developed lifelong friendships.
“Over the [last] four years I’ve made a lot of friends in the U.S. and I still have my family at home Carroll said. So people ask me what I want to do after volleyball in 10 15 years time where I want to live. And that’s such a hard question because all around the world there are people I care about.”
