 "Photo: Photo courtesy of the Long Beach State Sports Information Department")
Senior outside hitter Paul Lotman can't envision life without volleyball, even though his initial intentions for playing were to help him develop as a high school basketball player.
As a freshman at Los Alamitos High School, Lotman decided to play volleyball to enhance his jumping ability - he immediately fell in love with the sport.
"The end result was quitting basketball and investing all my time in volleyball," Lotman said. "Since then my passion for the game has grown considerably and I continue to learn new aspects of the sport that I didn't know before."
The senior sociology major didn't start his career at Long Beach State with the fanfare of a star athlete, either. As a walk-on redshirt freshman, Lotman wasn't handed a playing opportunity immediately. In fact, he was fetching volleyballs instead of spiking them for kills.
"It was the most humbling experience of my life, but I feel it was a very necessary step in my development as a player and a person," Lotman said. "It was difficult at first to cope with the role of being a ball-shagger or floor-wiper on a daily basis."
Head coach Alan Knipe commended Lotman for the progress he's made since his days as a freshman.
"I would be willing to say that Paul has come further along than any other player I have coached," Knipe said.
Once the 22-year-old cracked the starting lineup, he still was learning from All-American teammates Duncan Budinger, Robert Tarr and current 49ers volunteer assistant coach Tyler Hildebrand.
By the time his junior season started, Lotman was aware the team needed a leader, but he wasn't ready to assume that role and wasn't afraid to accept part of the blame for the team's 11-17 finish last season.
"I was hesitant to take over as the leader on and off the court, which I am sure contributed to our lack of success last year," Lotman said.
However, the star outside hitter emerged individually in his junior season, earning an All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation honorable mention selection after finishing with team-highs in kills (496), digs (176) and service aces (34) while hitting .308 on the season. He ranked third on the team with 96 total blocks.
Lotman was recognized as the Sports Imports/American Volleyball Coaches Association Division I-II Men's National Player of the Week, as well as the MPSF Player of the Week in March 2007.
The accolades didn't stop there. Along with Knipe and Tarr, Lotman was selected to the U.S. men's team and won a bronze medal at the World University Games last summer in Bangkok, Thailand.
"I knew that if I had the year I wanted to have in college, I would be given the opportunity to try out for the team and possibly be selected," Lotman said. "When I found out I made the team I remember calling everyone I knew to let them know how excited I was. I told my parents first because I knew they would be so happy for me, especially because it gave them an excuse to take a vacation adventure to Thailand.
"[It was]definitely one of the greatest experiences of my life that I will never forget. For a team that I had only hoped to find a spot on and then eventually earning a starting spot for a majority of the games was amazing."
The national championship aspirations are looking more realistic with every match, as Lotman and his teammates have spiked their competition and jumped out to a perfect 9-0 start to find themselves ranked third in the nation in the AVCA Top 15 poll.
"From the beginning of the year we established [the national championship] as our team goal and will do anything and everything we can to make sure it happens," Lotman said.
Once the team's magical season finally ends, LBSU will have to think about life without Paul Lotman.
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