Liz Masakayan

{{Infobox volleyball biography

| name = Liz Masakayan

| fullname = Elizabeth Lee Masakayan

| nickname =

| image =

| caption =

| nationality = Filipino / American

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1964|12|31}}

| birth_place = Quezon City, Philippines

| death_date =

| death_place =

| hometown =

| height = 5 ft 8 in

| weight =

| college = UCLA

| currentteammate =

| nationalyears = 1986–1991

| nationalteam = {{vbw|USA}}

| position = Outside hitter

| teamnumber = 3 (national team)
21 (UCLA)

| teammates =

| tours (points) =

| resultyears =

| location =

| result =

| updated =

| medaltemplates-title = Medal record

| medaltemplates =

{{MedalCountry | the {{USA}} }}

}}

Liz Masakayan (born December 31, 1964){{cite web |title=Liz Masakayan Biography |website=LizMasakayan.com |access-date=September 11, 2010 |url=http://www.lizmasakayan.com/327026.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130223052818/http://www.lizmasakayan.com/327026.html |archive-date=February 23, 2013 |url-status=dead }} is a Filipino-American former indoor and beach volleyball player, and current coach. She participated in the 1988 Summer Olympics with the United States women's national volleyball team, and as a beach volleyball player won a total of 47 tournaments in her career.

Early life

Masakayan's Filipino father and US-born mother met each other in New York City. Liz Masakayan was born in Quezon City on December 31, 1964. Masakayan, and her mother, moved to Santa Monica, California when she was four or five years old.

Volleyball was the last organized sport Masakayan tried out for in her first year (10th grade) at Santa Monica High School (a three-year school back in the 1980s).{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHzjWNjqXjA |title=Liz Masakayan Acceptance Speech |website=YouTube |publisher=VolleyMob |last=Masakayan |first=Liz |format=video |date=May 23, 2018 |language=en }} Her first year was spent on the junior varsity squad, and the last two on the varsity counterpart, where the team won the California state championship in 1981.{{Cite web |url=https://socalindoorvolleyballhof.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/2017-18-SEPT-PDF-PRESS-RELEASE-FINALISTS.pdf |website=Southern California Indoor Volleyball Hall of Fame |title=UCLA, USC Again Dominate So. Calif. Indoor Volleyball Hall of Fame Finalists for May 6, 2018 2nd Induction Class |access-date=September 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221112013/https://socalindoorvolleyballhof.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/2017-18-SEPT-PDF-PRESS-RELEASE-FINALISTS.pdf |archive-date=February 21, 2019 |url-status=live }}

Masakayan played Little League baseball when she was ten, the first year it allowed girls to play due to Title IX. Most of the time she was the only girl on the team. Masakayan heard a lot of comments over four years from playing on a team full of boys but says, "I learned at an early age that if you just worked hard, had fun, and treated people nicely, that everything would fall into place, like winning". She played soccer for seven years and ran track for four years. Masakayan helped form the first girls' soccer team at Santa Monica High School.

Career

=College=

After winning the 1984 NCAA Championships at UCLA, where she still holds numerous single season and career records, Masakayan was given the Broderick Award for being the nation's premier collegiate volleyball player.{{Cite web|url=http://www.bvbinfo.com/player.asp?ID=1188 |website=Beach Volleyball Database |title=Liz Masakayan |access-date=March 27, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230604103740/http://bvbinfo.com/Player.asp?ID=1188 |archive-date=June 4, 2023 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-10-10-we-15988-story.html |title=She Used to Say There Was 'More to Life' : But These Days Volleyball Is Playing a Bigger Part for Bruin Star |last=Ripton |first=Ray |date=October 10, 1985 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US|access-date=March 27, 2020}} {{subscription required}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.collegiatewomensportsawards.com/archives/volleyball |title=Past Honda Sports Award Winners for Volleyball |website=Collegiate Women Sports Awards |language=en |access-date=March 27, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230729171231/https://www.collegiatewomensportsawards.com/archives/volleyball |archive-date=July 29, 2023 |url-status=live }} Masakayan was a two-time AVCA first-team All-American, and was named the 1985–86 UCLA Female Athlete of the Year.{{Cite web |url=http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_volleyball_RB/2015/2015awards.pdf |website=NCAA |title=Women's Volleyball All-America Teams and Award Winners |access-date=September 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705195523/http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_volleyball_RB/2015/2015awards.pdf |archive-date=July 5, 2022 |url-status=live }} She has also been inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame.{{cite web|url=http://www.asiancemagazine.com/nov_2007/liz_masakayan_volleyball_top_athlete_to_top_coach|title=Liz Masakayan: Bouncing Volleyball Courts and Positions|date=November 2007|publisher=Asiance|access-date=October 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160506235307/https://www.asiancemagazine.com/nov_2007/liz_masakayan_volleyball_top_athlete_to_top_coach |archive-date=May 6, 2016 |url-status=dead}}

=National team=

As an indoor player, Masakayan was an outside hitter for the United States women's national volleyball team for five years, and competed at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.{{Cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-09-26-sp-1846-story.html |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |last=Dwyre |first=Bill |date=26 September 1988 |title=The Seoul Games : Women’s Volleyball : Gallant Effort by U.S. Ends in Loss to Peru; No Chance for a Medal |access-date=10 September 2024 }} {{subscription required}} She won bronze medals at the 1990 World Championships in Beijing, 1987 Pan American Games in Indianapolis, and 1986 Goodwill Games in Moscow.{{Cite web |url=https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/53247 |title=Liz Masakayan |website=Olympedia |access-date=August 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230827221019/https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/53247 |archive-date=August 27, 2023 |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |url=https://www.philstar.com/sports/2005/06/21/282855/fil-am-athlete-honored-la |title=Fil-Am athlete honored in LA |last=So |first=Jannelle |date=June 21, 2005 |work=The Philippine Star |access-date=September 13, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230913143934/https://www.philstar.com/sports/2005/06/21/282855/fil-am-athlete-honored-la |archive-date=September 13, 2023 |url-status=live }}

=Beach volleyball=

The pair of Karolyn Kirby and Masakayan were the most dominant team in the early 1990s, winning 29 tournaments. They won the inaugural 1994 Goodwill Games in Saint Petersburg. They also won the 1994 World Champions in La Serena. Masakyan was the WPVA's (Women's Professional Volleyball Association) 1992 Most Valuable Player,{{Cite magazine |url=https://vault.si.com/vault/1993/07/05/liz-masakayan-and-karolyn-kirby |title=Liz Masakayan and Karolyn Kirby |last=Smith |first=Shelley |date=July 5, 1993 |magazine=Sports Illustrated |publisher=Time |location=New York City |access-date=August 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207110639/https://vault.si.com/vault/1993/07/05/liz-masakayan-and-karolyn-kirby |archive-date=December 7, 2022 |url-status=live }} the 1993 co-Most Valuable Player, and the Best Defensive Player in 1991 and 1992. In addition, she was the 1993 and 1994 Best Hitter, and the 1995 Most Inspirational Player after coming back from several knee surgeries.

Masakayan and her partner, Elaine Youngs, narrowly missed qualifying for the 2000 Sydney Olympics.{{Cite web |url=https://socalindoorvolleyballhof.com/liz-masakayan/ |website=Socalindoorvolleyballhof.com |title=Liz Masakayan, 2018 |access-date=September 14, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230827222252/https://socalindoorvolleyballhof.com/liz-masakayan/ |archive-date=August 27, 2023 |url-status=live }} They captured the first tournament of the millennium in February 2000 in Vitória. The pair also won the bronze medal at the 1999 World Championships in Marseille.

Throughout Masakayan's beach volleyball career, she won 47 tournaments and reached the final four 61 times. In 2001, she was the Santa Barbara champion, and in December captured the bronze medal at the FIVB (Fédération Internationale de Volleyball) season finale in Fortaleza, where Masakayan announced her retirement from international competition. She retired from domestic competition after playing four tournaments in 2005.

Coaching

=Indoor coaching=

As an indoor coach, Masakayan was an assistant coach at UCLA when they won the National Championships in 1991 and runner-up in 1992. Masakayan was inducted in the AVCA (American Volleyball Coaches Association) Hall of Fame in December 2011.

=Beach volleyball coaching=

Masakayan coached the beach volleyball team of Elaine Youngs and Nicole Branagh, who were ranked second in the AVP in 2007.

References

External links

{{Beach Volleyball Database | 1188 | Liz Masakayan}}
[https://olympics.com/en/athletes/elizabeth-lee-masakayan Elizabeth Lee Masakayan at Olympics.com]
[https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/53247 Olympedia profile: Liz Masakayan]
[https://uclabruins.com/honors/hall-of-fame/liz-masakayan/221 UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame profile]
[https://socalindoorvolleyballhof.com/liz-masakayan/ Southern California Indoor Volleyball Hall of Fame profile]
[https://uclabruins.com/sports/2023/7/11/ucla-womens-volleyball-olympians.aspx UCLA Women's Volleyball Olympians]
[https://women.volleybox.net/elizabeth-masakayan-p11436 Volleybox.net profile]

{{succession box|before={{flagathlete|Nancy Reno
and Karolyn Kirby|USA}}|title=Women's FIVB World Tour Points Champions
alongside {{flagicon|USA}} Karolyn Kirby|years=1993|after={{flagathlete|Adriana Samuel
and Mônica Rodrigues|BRA}} }}

{{American Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame members|state=collapsed}}

Category:Living people

Category:American women's volleyball players

Category:1964 births

Category:Filipino emigrants to the United States

Category:American sportspeople of Filipino descent

Category:American women's beach volleyball players

Category:Olympic volleyball players for the United States

Category:UCLA Bruins women's volleyball players

Category:Volleyball players at the 1988 Summer Olympics

Category:Competitors at the 1986 Goodwill Games