In volleyball, O'Brien is outstanding for Gulf

This article appeared in the Pasco edition of the St. Petersburg Times on Oct. 7, 1999. Photo by Janel Schroeder.

As a freshman, Gulf's Laura O'Brien stood 5 feet 8. She was already athletic, loaded with potential and an integral part of Shari Schau's rebuilding plan for the school's volleyball program.

Three years later, O'Brien remains athletic, loaded with potential and is an integral part of the Gulf volleyball team.

And she's still 5-8.

"Yeah, what's up with that?" O'Brien said. "I thought for sure, "I'm going to be 6-feet, baby!' Then I just stopped growing."

Vertically, yes. But as a player, never. What O'Brien lacks in size she has made up for with hard work and dedication. Despite playing for the west side's least-celebrated team, she has become arguably its best all-around player.

"We've faced everybody in the county, and I'm biased to an extent, but she's at least No. 1 or 2," Schau said. "She is just a great player."

It's no coincidence that most of the high-water marks in Gulf's history have come with O'Brien on the court. She holds virtually every school record. She was a starter when the Bucs made their first playoff appearance in 1997. This year, the Bucs are off to one of their best starts at 9-6, and she earned all-tournament honors twice, a first for a Gulf player this decade.

O'Brien also has helped tie up some loose ends. For the first time since she has been at Gulf, the Bucs have managed regular-season wins over River Ridge, Ridgewood and Zephyrhills.

"I really wanted to beat everyone," O'Brien said. "It feels really nice after a while to be beating someone."

The only school O'Brien hasn't helped beat is Hudson. The Cobras beat Gulf on Monday and continue to own it. The Buc senior squirms in her seat, smiles and looks to the sky for some divine scheduling intervention when talking about Hudson, the state's No. 1 Class 4A team.

"I wanted to beat them sooooo bad," she said. "I wish we could play them again. I really, really do. I wish they were in our district."

Said Schau: "She was very upset because she thought she didn't play well against Hudson. I told her you can't be perfect every night. But she strives for that perfection, and that's what makes her a good athlete."

O'Brien has played through a back injury all season. Three doctors gave her three different verdicts, so she does not know what the injury is. She does know it occurred during a track meet her sophomore year while triple jumping. Ever since, the back erupts into pain during athletic activity and is fine when she is off the court.

For precaution, she heats the back before practice and matches and ices it afterward. It does little to prevent the onset of the pain but slows it some. What choice does she have, she asks? Her last doctor told her she would have to learn to live with the pain or quit volleyball.

The latter was laughable.

"Oh no, no, no, no, no," O'Brien said. "I was not going to quit.

"But it's so frustrating. I try to convince myself that it doesn't hurt, but you know, that doesn't work. I know when I do something it will hurt. I hate to say it, and I'm not making excuses, but I know I could play better if it didn't hurt."

That thought might be scary for the opposition. In pain, she still leads the county with 106 kills and is hitting at an impressive 40 percent clip.

"That's what is so amazing; that she hits 40 percent against girls who are 6-foot or taller," Schau said.

O'Brien would be an ideal outside hitter but has never played it in high school. Gulf has always needed her in the middle, though she is undersized, and Schau even flirted with using her as a setter this year. There are not too many middles that could make that transition, but Schau is convinced O'Brien could have.

O'Brien is hoping to play volleyball next year at Central Florida, though she is also looking at some smaller schools. In the meantime, she says she still has some work to do at Gulf, mainly getting the Bucs into the playoffs, and appears to be most content she will leave the volleyball program in good stead.

"This year has been great," O'Brien said. "Gulf is no longer the cheesy team you just know you're going to beat and then go home. When you're overlooked, you are the underdog, and when you win, it is so awesome."

Thanks to its top dog, Gulf's days as an underdog may be over.