A concrete jungle is frightening to some people who have lived among suburban prairies and rolling hills in the past. The bustling city of Eugene encompasses the University of Oregon, but not to the point that it scares Duck’s volleyball player Katie O’Neil.
The senior libero describes herself as “a white girl from Podunk” who was compelled to move from the small town of Corbett to fulfill her desire for self-diversification.
O’Neil has always known where she’s needed to be in life, especially in a volleyball sense.
“There were about 150 kids in my high school,” she said. “It was pretty apparent at that point that if I was going to be serious about volleyball, I needed to go to a bigger school.
“Me and my parents made the decision that I would go to Gresham, and it ended up really benefiting me,” she continued. “I accredit that to me being here, because had I not (transferred), there’s no way I would have got the maturity and the experience. It’s a 4A school, so I could keep excelling.”
Transplanting to Gresham High School after her freshman year allowed O’Neil to constantly improve her skills and technique. She accrued more repetitions throughout the school year and was not limited to the off-season with the Nike Northwest Junior Volleyball Club.
Once O’Neil devoted more of her schedule to volleyball, her agenda for other activities shrunk.
“Volleyball was a year-round thing for me,” O’Neil said, “but I also played basketball and softball. At Corbett, it was feasible.” She explained that Gresham’s athletic programs were more intense and time consuming. O’Neil was unable to sustain such a busy schedule, so she decided to solely focus on volleyball, her favorite sport.
Family matters
O’Neil comes from an athletic background. Her parents were active in high school athletics, and her siblings have all played sports.
The small town atmosphere is still evident in O’Neil’s current living situation, particularly because she resides under the same roof as her younger brother, Kevin, who is a part-time student at Oregon.
“I have found that my family is so incredibly supportive of me and everything I’m trying to do,” O’Neil said. “It helps me to have him here because it gives me a slice of home, and I am constantly reminded that I am loved and supported.”
Her family makes the two-hour trek from Corbett to watch every home match and provide additional support. They also try to attend every road match in the Northwest.
Within Oregon’s volleyball program, a relationship has formed between O’Neil and the three defensive specialists on the team. They have created a family within the family that they call Katie Incorporated, she said.
“We have a special little bond, as do probably the middles and the outsides with each of their groups,” O’Neil said. “It’s fun. We fire each other up and have a good time in practice. We laugh and make sure we’re supporting each other. It’s empowering to have a support system like this and people who care about you this much.”
Coach Carl Ferreira is aware of this unity and encourages it in every way.
“Katie has made our other three DS’s better, and they have made Katie better,” he said. “They push each other daily. They have seen Katie perform at a high level and provide our point scoring system with opportunities.”
O’Neil helped renovate Oregon’s goals and overall approach after her sophomore year. She said there was a lack of team chemistry during her first two years with the program, which made it an unenjoyable experience.
“(We brought) in new people who were still fresh and positive about what was going on,” O’Neil said. “We outlined what we wanted to do, we made that commitment and held ourselves accountable.”
The result was a family dynamic that changed the atmosphere of the team, she said. Ferreira appreciates O’Neil’s contribution as a leader and acknowledges her as the team’s unsung hero.
“Katie is one of those behind-the-scenes players,” Ferreira said. “She is the backbone of what we do as a program. Katie is very responsible for how our system operates via what she does emotionally for us. She has exceptional instincts for the game, and she is always engaged at a high level.”
Sights set elsewhere
As a leader on the floor, O’Neil has to be able to communicate to her fellow Ducks. The 21-year-old is double-majoring in English and Spanish and aspires to teach English, possibly as a second language, in high school.
After taking Spanish her first year, O’Neil developed an appreciation for the language and decided to study abroad. She stayed in Querétaro, Mexico for six weeks the summer after her freshman year, and she is planning on traveling to Chile next year.
“It was a really cool program,” O’Neil said. “It made me fall in love with Spanish, the Latin culture and studying abroad. I will be done after this fall with volleyball commitments, so I can go in the spring.”
Art and music are also of interest to O’Neil. She played piano for ten years and has sold paintings in the past. O’Neil said that she would pursue these hobbies if time were more permitting.
Even with her busy student-athlete lifestyle, O’Neil tries to add in some variety. The “white-girl from Podunk” clarified that she is not just a one-dimensional jock.
“I just like to be a diverse person. If I were focused on any one thing too much, I’d just go nuts.”
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