Kasie Spencer will be a pioneer, of sorts, for The Master’s University women’s beach volleyball team that will begin its first season as an intercollegiate sport in the spring of 2020.

Some athletes follow in the footsteps of one or both of their parents, growing up around the sport their mother or father played and deciding to pursue it collegiately.

Spencer’s father, Russ, was a four-year player on the TMU men’s soccer team and her mother, Tammi, played indoor volleyball and softball for the Mustangs.

“Kasie’s parents both went to The Master’s and knowing that, I thought that this had to be a great place for her, as well,” said Master’s head coach Annett Davis. “She’s coming in as a beach-only athlete with a lot of knowledge since she’s played the last two years for Ventura College.”

Last spring, Spencer played on a Pirate squad that won the Western State Conference championship and advanced to the California Community College Athletic Association Southern California Regionals.

On her athletic goals at The Master’s, Spencer said, “I am excited to continue my career in beach volleyball. I look forward to improving my skills and working with coaches and teammates who are going to push me. I hope to contribute to some positive results for TMU’s first season of sand volleyball.”

Spencer, who attended Foothill Technology High School in Ventura, said she chose The Master’s for two reasons.

“I chose Master’s because I know I am going to get a strong Christian education here. I look forward to going to school where the people around me have the same Christian values as I do,” she said. “Both of my parents are alumni and played sports here, so I am excited to follow in their footsteps.”

— By Don Gilmore, TMU Assistant Sports Information Director