NIU volleyball player MacKenzie Roddy is no stranger to success on the court.

First with tennis, then volleyball, Roddy has always been a major threat in both sports. Roddy felt quitting tennis to join volleyball was the right decision for herself. After joining Cajon High School’s volleyball team her sophomore year, the San Bernardino, Calif. native felt the sport was what she needed.

“I lacked passion for [tennis],” Roddy said. “When I switched to volleyball, I found a new passion and it was a freshness that I never had in tennis. The whole team environment and winning as a team was so different than the individuality of tennis.”

Roddy’s transition to volleyball was nothing too difficult for the high school valedictorian and Presidential Scholar. Roddy has played several positions on the court. Between high school, her club team, Rancho Valley and NIU, Roddy bounced through positions in lineups. Her versatility and court IQ leads NIU head coach Ray Gooden to believe her potential is ever-growing.

“We were originally recruiting her as a middle [blocker],” Gooden said. “She was going to play on the right side and then she ended up playing on the left side on her club team last year. Since she’s come here, she’s back on the right side. We were excited about her court savvy, she’s done everything as advertised and we’ve been happy with what she’s been able to help us with.”

NIU assistant coach and recruiter Coley Pawlikowski was especially impressed with Roddy’s intelligence when she saw her play with Rancho Valley in her junior year of high school. After spending a couple weeks on the West Coast, Pawlikowski started recruiting Roddy during her junior season, but really picked up the pace during Roddy’s senior campaign when she led Cajon to its third consecutive league championship as team captain.

“She played with one of the best players in the country [Krista Vansant], who’s starting outside at University of Washington,” Pawlikowski said. “On her [club] team, she had a bunch of high-level players and she was the constant on that team. She played at their level and never was up-and-down; she was always stable.”

Roddy then visited DeKalb and met with NIU’s players and staff. She felt an immediate connection with her potential teammates and fully committed to the Huskies.

“When I came on my visit, I really loved all the girls and the team environment here,” Roddy said. “I really wanted to be part of it. I felt this program was really on the up, and I wanted to be a part of it and see how far we could go with it.”

Roddy has been a part of this season’s success for the Huskies. She leads all Huskie freshmen in matches played, while ranking fifth on the team with 121 kills in 81 sets. She also has 0.41 blocks per set, which puts her at fourth-best on the squad. Being so far away from her home in California does not seem to be an issue for Roddy.

“We make jokes with her about the fact that she has to get closed-toed shoes now because we have different seasons out here,” Gooden said. “We have more grass and it’s greener out here. She’s done a great job with adapting, though. We were worried about her being homesick, but a lot of times the kids who come from far away are able to handle it the best. We are very fortunate that she chose to come to NIU.”