Senior Highlight: Charlie Ekstrom

After 5 seasons on The Farm, Charlie Ekstrom has confirmed to be a stand-out participant and helped elevate the seashore volleyball program to new heights. She was a fundamental contributor because the workforce scored its first-ever win within the NCAA event this yr. She began her collegiate profession robust and was named to the Pac-12 All Freshman Workforce (2019). A plethora of awards adopted: All-Pac-12 Second Workforce (2019, 2020, 2022, 2023), AVCA Collegiate Seaside Second Workforce All-American (2022) and even the AVCA Collegiate Seaside Prime Flight Award with associate Maddi Kriz (2022). For her efforts within the classroom, Ekstrom is a 3 time Pac-12 Educational Honour Roll (2020, 2021, 2022) recipient. 

The Each day’s Chantal Eiwanger sat down with Ekstrom to replicate on her time at Stanford, what she is going to take away from 5 years with the Cardinal and what her future seems like as knowledgeable. 

The Stanford Each day (TSD): What made you select seashore volleyball? Did you play another sports activities rising up? 

Charlie Ekstrom (CE): I suppose I can begin with the opposite sports activities that I performed after which clarify why I ended up selecting seashore. My first sport rising up was karate. I performed rec tennis and rec sports activities leagues, however the factor that I used to be positively essentially the most invested in was karate. I skilled for nine-and-a-half years. After which after I was within the seventh or eighth yr of karate is after I found volleyball. As a result of I’m from San Diego, I began enjoying indoor and seashore volleyball, and I used to be lucky sufficient to dwell in a spot the place seashore volleyball was actually current and really simply accessible. After I began enjoying indoor, it was form of the pure tendency to additionally play seashore. I all the time actually cherished seashore greater than indoor volleyball. It was very easy for me to resolve to depart indoor. There have been some fairly dangerous issues like bullying that ended up having me lose my love for indoor volleyball. I used to be already far more enthusiastic about seashore, so I took that zeal and ran with it. I went full-time seashore after I was 15 years previous. I’ve been coaching, touring and doing all of these items ever since.

TSD: Did you all the time know you wished to play seashore volleyball in faculty? 

CE: I feel from the second I began enjoying it, sure. After I was just a little and I didn’t know what seashore volleyball was, all I wished to do was go to Stanford. I didn’t know something in regards to the college in any respect. I used to be similar to, ‘Gabriella from Excessive College Musical went there, so I’ve to go there.’ After which I began enjoying volleyball and I really had a household pal whose cousin performed Stanford indoor volleyball. I bear in mind pondering that it could be so enjoyable to play volleyball at Stanford. After which I began enjoying seashore like three months later, and as soon as I began enjoying seashore, it was all I wished to do. However seashore volleyball was nonetheless making an attempt to work in direction of being an NCAA sport. As soon as seashore volleyball was named an NCAA sport [in 2015], that was after I was all in for seashore volleyball. I didn’t care the place I went. I simply wished to play. I had been dedicated elsewhere for a yr after which after some adjustments to their program, I reached out to Stanford on a whim. I had the conclusion that I ought to attain out to Stanford and see if I might observe that pipe dream.

TSD: What has been the spotlight of your time right here at Stanford, each on the seashore volleyball workforce and off?

CE: I feel the spotlight of being on the workforce was with the ability to see this system develop. We began out as a really tiny workforce that was not anticipated to essentially win something, being unranked my freshman yr. From there, we’ve elevated into this prime 10 program for the final three years. Some fundamental highlights embrace after we upset UCLA and LSU this yr. These had been in all probability the 2 coolest moments after we upset two top-five packages. We had by no means achieved that earlier than.

My spotlight at Stanford on the whole are the buddies that I’ve made right here. I’ve been in a position to do lots of fairly cool issues and be part of some cool management roles, however I feel an important piece of all is the buddies that I’ve made alongside the best way. An enormous piece of my very own private development got here from the folks that I met at Stanford, and I do know for a incontrovertible fact that I’m going to be shut to those individuals for the remainder of my life.

TSD: What recommendation would you give your freshman self? 

CE: Let the adversity be what it’s. It is going to will let you develop and to not solely turn out to be a extra expert volleyball participant, however turn out to be an general extra well-rounded human being.

TSD: Wanting again at your time at Stanford, is there something you’ll change? 

CE: No, I actually like the individual that I’m at the moment. I really feel that if I modified something that might be a kind of issues that causes a series response. I feel throughout COVID when our season was canceled, [that] would have been the simple reply however I feel that yr was essentially the most very important yr for me. I used to be in a position to develop nearer with my friendships and I received to take my precedence away from volleyball and work out what I wished to do past and what degree I wished to pursue it at. Upon reflection, I’m actually grateful as a result of I don’t suppose that I’d have gotten the prospect to step again and likewise wouldn’t be doing a grasp’s diploma, as a result of I don’t suppose I’d have achieved an extra diploma with out the volleyball with it. All of the issues which have occurred, all the explanations and the issues they’ve produced from them, I’m actually grateful for.

TSD: Your first yr on the workforce you went 11-18 and had been unranked nationally, after which the workforce made the NCAA event your fifth season. What do you credit score that development to? 

CE: I feel our workforce tradition has actually shifted through the years since I got here in my freshman yr. Numerous us knew that we had been a part of one thing to construct. I additionally suppose that we’ve got shifted from taking a look at the concept that we’re constructing one thing into the concept that we’ve got now set the inspiration so let’s develop from there. We’re all the time on the lookout for extra, we’re all the time hungry for extra, we’re all the time looking and seeking to develop and enhance ourselves. I feel that the piece of tradition that we’ve got produced has induced us to have the ability to elevate loads. The opposite reply to that’s that we simply have much more expertise now. We now have a much bigger workforce, we’re rather more developed and it’s simpler to recruit. Since my freshman yr, Stanford seashore volleyball has been in a position to elevate with the sport and usher in some fairly unbelievable skills which have simply elevated us that rather more. 

TSD: What made you resolve to take your fifth-year? Was that ever not on the desk? 

CE: I feel getting the COVID redshirt again was a reasonably constructive indication that I’d play a fifth yr. As soon as COVID occurred, I used to be pondering, ‘Am I actually going to be able to say goodbye after senior yr?’ In lots of methods, I used to be able to say goodbye and I did say goodbye to lots of people that made up what Stanford was for me. However I feel taking the fifth yr gave me a cool alternative to say goodbye to the place as properly. This yr gave me the closure of being able to say goodbye. I knew that I didn’t need my faculty expertise to be over and I knew I most well-liked to remain at Stanford as a result of I find it irresistible right here a lot. 

TSD: Do you see your self being concerned in seashore volleyball sooner or later? 

CE: I’m really presently enjoying in tournaments on the skilled tour. The professional season began when faculty season began, so I principally took like per week between when the school season ended and the following professional tour occasion began. I’ll be ending up my diploma after which after that, I’ll go proper again to enjoying tournaments fairly constantly. I’ll play professionally for so long as my physique lets me and so long as I’m nonetheless loving it. I feel that an enormous motive why I play seashore volleyball is as a result of I’ve such a powerful ardour and love for it. If there’s any cut-off date the place I really feel that there’s a love loss, then that’s after I’ll in all probability step away.

TSD: What are your plans post-graduation? 

CE: I’m transferring to Los Angeles to coach full-time to play skilled seashore volleyball. But additionally since skilled seashore volleyball sadly doesn’t pay, I shall be working as properly. 

TSD: What are you going to overlook most about being on the Stanford seashore volleyball workforce? 

CE: I’m going to overlook the workforce features of faculty seashore volleyball as a result of skilled seashore volleyball may be very particular person. I’m going to overlook not having a workforce to fall again to in life. Everyone on the workforce is such unbelievable human beings, and in order that’s a tough goodbye for positive. I used to be very teary-eyed after we had been eradicated [from the NCAA tournament] in Gulf Shores. Teary-eyed was a really mild method to put that I used to be a sizzling mess. However I feel that I’m prepared, keen and excited to maneuver into this subsequent chapter of life. I feel that this chapter has been such an vital one to me and I’m gonna miss being a part of the workforce for positive. 

This transcript has been flippantly edited and condensed for readability.