Hi, my name is Marisa Nakata and I am a senior at Hawaii Baptist Academy. I come from a family of 5 who loves volleyball! We have fun every week at my grandma’s house on Sundays playing with my cousins, aunties and uncles. I grew up watching my older siblings play volleyball and I practiced passing on the side with my parents and favorite panda lite-ball. I knew from a young age that I wanted to play volleyball at the highest collegiate level. In watching games I was amazed at the skill level of the players and dreamed of becoming a collegiate athlete myself. I am a very hardworking and encouraging teammate and a team leader. As a leader I push my teammates to have confidence in themselves and to fully trust in their abilities. Playing college volleyball would allow me to challenge myself physically and mentally to compete with the best players in the country.