An ocean away

Lei Wang misses her mother’s cooking.

The redshirt freshman from Shanghai, China, and starting setter on Missouri’s volleyball team says that Chinese restaurants in Columbia are too Americanized and don’t compare to the meals that Gao Ling Ling, her mother, makes for her back in China.

Na Yang, a junior from Shan Dong, China, and a starting outside hitter, misses being able to see the sights her home country offers.

“I miss the cities; there are so many things I miss seeing,” Yang said. “I want to be able to go to the ocean, to the islands.”

Yang has been in America for four years and hasn’t been home once. It’s just one of the many sacrifices she has had to make in order to live out what she calls her dream of playing volleyball in America.

It’s a sacrifice that all international players have a tough time dealing with, according to coach Wayne Kreklow.

“It’s like a typical freshman going away to school times 10,” he said. “They are coming halfway around the world and they can’t go home for the weekend.”

Kreklow is certainly thankful that players like Wang and Yang have made the journey to America. Since the Missouri team and coaching staff visited China on a goodwill tour in 2001, Chinese players have had a huge impact on the Missouri program.

“It’s helped give our program some good balance,” Kreklow said. “The international players have the benefit of coming through a different system that allows them many more practice opportunities than what American players get.”

Shen Danru came to Missouri from Shanghai, China, and began playing for the Tigers in 2002. By the time she played her last game in black and gold last season, she was the Tigers’ all-time leader in kills, kills per games, aces, digs, points and attacks.

Danru also did a lot to help Wang and Yang.

“She was like my big sister here,” Wang said. “She taught me how to cook and do a lot of little things like that. And we talked all the time. It was nice to get to talk to someone in my local language.”

Even with Danru’s guidance, it’s been hard to adjust, especially to the English language. Communicating with her teammates has been a big issue for Wang since coming to MU.

“That was really hard at the beginning,” she said. “We say numbers different ways, so when I call out strategies, I have to translate in my mind. I’m getting a lot better at that, though.”

Yang did not speak English at all before coming to America, and had to spend a year in the country at her own expense taking English classes in order to pass the ACT before she could even start her academic and athletic career at MU.

It is all part of a process that Kreklow says makes it very difficult for his coaching staff to bring international players to Missouri.

“It’s a tough thing because not only does a player have to be a good player, she has to be a good student,” he said. “And (she) has to have the financial resources to spend a year here on her own.”

The two are adjusting not only to the American way of life, but are also improving their individual games.

Wang struggled throughout the out-of-conference season and had just 28 assists in Penn State’s 3-0 sweep of Missouri, a match that started a three-match losing streak for the Tigers. But, she has stepped up her game lately. During Missouri’s current three-match winning streak, Wang is averaging 52 assists a match. She played the best match of her career in the Tigers’ win over Kansas State on Sept. 20th, recording 60 assists and a career-best 20 digs.

Yang also has had a slow start after having knee surgery in May. But Yang has rebounded over the last two weeks. She had 17 kills and 11 digs against Texas A&M and 16 kills and 11 digs against Kansas State. In Saturday’s upset win over then-No. 5 Texas, Yang had her best match of the season, leading Missouri with 17 kills.

Wang and Yang will look to continue their strong play when Missouri tries for their fourth straight win tonight. The Tigers take on Baylor at 6:30 p.m. at Hearnes Center.

With players like Danru, Wang, and Yang, it is no wonder that the Missouri coaching staff is working hard to keep strong ties with China. The team visited the Asia again last year, and played an exhibition match with Beihang University from China in Columbia in April.

Wang and Yang say they would recommend Missouri to future recruits. And despite all the rough times she has gone through, Yang looks at things positively.

“I just have to push myself through the hard times,” Yang said. “Everything will be fine.”