Lakewood High School grad Tracy Stalls just got back from a three-week, eight-match tour of China with the U.S. women’s volleyball national team. Now her focus is making sure she’s still on the team when it returns to China this summer for the Olympics.
“My heart starts pounding and my hands sweat a little bit,” the 23-year-old Stalls said when asked about possibly making the team. “I try not to go too far in that, because it is the outcome goal, and right now I’ve got to max out what’s in front of me.”
Soon women who play professionally overseas will begin filtering back to Colorado Springs, where the women’s national team is based, and competition for spots on the Olympic squad will intensify.
“There’s so much about this process of making this team and realizing that dream that I can’t control,” Stalls said. “It’s important that I settle down a little bit and keep what’s in front of me at the forefront.”
Stalls’ father, Dave, played defensive end for Northern Colorado and three NFL teams (Dallas, Tampa Bay and Oakland). Tracy measured 6-feet-1 as a high school freshman and now stands 6-feet-3.
“Aside from the gene factor, which I appreciate, he was wonderful in terms of advice — being able to talk to someone after a match, whether it went well or poorly, and get some real feedback,” Stalls said. “Parents, often all they want to do is console their kid. They want to tell them, ‘Everything’s going to be OK.’ What I really appreciate about my dad is that he knew that wasn’t going to help me in the long run.”
Stalls wrote a blog on her experiences in China (www. ), having previously visited that country when she played for Nebraska in college. But this time she was traveling with U.S. national team coach “Jenny” Lang Ping, who is a superstar there, being a former captain and coach of the Chinese national team.
“I think she did a great job,” Lang Ping said. “Of course there are techniques she needs to improve. We’ll try to give her more opportunities to play against different teams this year.”
Stalls is a resident athlete at the Colorado Springs Olympic Training Center and hopes to play professionally overseas in the future. First, though, she’s focusing on Beijing.
“That’s the goal,” Stalls said. “Right now, at my position as a middle blocker, there’s three spots, and we’ve got some really strong veterans who are coming back.”
John Meyer: 303-954-1616 or jmeyer@denverpost.com
