By MARK MOSCHETTI
Seattle Pacific Sports Information
 
SEATTLE – When Gabby Oddo walks onto the volleyball court, there are certain things that are as much a part of her as her No. 3 uniform.
 
Her smarts and work ethic. Her feel for the game. Her team-first approach.
 
And her knee brace. The big black, heavy-duty, industrial-strength version of a Band-Aid that she has worn on her right leg for the past three seasons while racking up a slew of stellar stats for Seattle Pacific.
 
 

After suffering a torn ACL and partially-torn meniscus midway through her freshman season in 2016, wearing that thing was a necessity during her sophomore year. While she doesn't need it anymore, Oddo decided to keep strapping it on every night just for some added protection and peace of mind.
 
"Once I was wearing it for the first year, I was accustomed to it, and it felt good to wear," Oddo said. "So I'm going to wear it through this last week."
 
"This last week." That time has officially arrived on Oddo's career calendar. She'll play her final two matches in that No. 3 uniform in Alaska, as the Falcons visit Fairbanks on Thursday and Anchorage on Saturday, both at 8:00 p.m. Pacific time.
 
"It's crazy – we've been here so long, and now we're at the very end," Oddo said as she reflected on the four years gone by. "It's kind of a bittersweet moment. But we're all excited to go to Alaska, because those matches are always so fun. Their gym is so huge and so new, and there are always so many fans. Even though they don't cheer for you, you can make it seem like they're cheering for you."
 
TRADING GOALS FOR KILLS
On most timelines, Gabby Oddo was a volleyball latecomer. Growing up, she had been a soccer player, and figured if she was going to be a college athlete, it would be on the pitch.
 
It was her mom Anna who planted the volleyball seed in her mind prior to Oddo's freshman year at Alta Loma High School in the California city of the same name.
 
"She played volleyball in high school, but I had never been a part of it," Oddo said. "She said, 'Why don't you try out?' So I said, 'OK, let's do it.' A couple of my friends tried out with me. It was a fun thing we all did together, and I just fell in love with it."
 
By her senior year at Alta Loma, Oddo was the Mt. Baldy League MVP, and had been named to the All-California Interscholastic Federation 1^st team twice. Even with that, she said her recruiting process didn't start until late in her senior year, and she had just a few options.
 
Seattle Pacific was one of them.
 
"I chose here because of the people and the place – and I wanted to get out of Southern California for a while," she said, then added with a bit of a laugh, "I transitioned to the rain here, and it's been fun. I always loved the rain in California, but it's definitely a different kind of rain here – more of a mist. I like it."
 
Former coach Chris Johnson was the one who brought Oddo into the Falcons' fold. At the time, Johnson said, "She has every skill and every shot in the book as a hitter. And she's a really good defender. It's not at all unusual for her to make a sprawling dig, then get right up and hammer the pipe."
 
ONE, TWO, THREE TIMES A THOUSAND
Johnson was spot-on about Oddo's abilities. Heading into this week, "every shot in the book" has turned into 1,345 career kills, the second-highest total in the 34-year history of the program. As for the digs – sprawling or not – Oddo has 1,043 of those. And, along with her service aces and her blocking, she has 1,525 career points, No. 3 on the SPU list.
 
That's a statistical "triple thousand" – and it doesn't happen very often. She is the just third Falcon player to pull that off, joining Stephanie Huffman and Leilani Kamahoahoa.
 
Though not one to obsess with Oddo recognizes the significance of the accomplishment – and is quick to dish credit to everyone else for helping her achieve it. She passed 1,000 points and reached 1,000 kills last year, then passed 1,000 digs two weeks ago.
 
"I didn't think about how long it would take or how much work it would take to get to those numbers," she said. "It's not only about me, but the fact that my team and teammates have been so good. Having Symone (Tran) setting up the kills and the points, I never would have been able to do it if she wasn't here for the past three years. And then just having blockers and being able to work around them for the defense to get digs – it's really a whole team effort."
 
NAVIGATING THE KNEE INJURY
Oddo's numbers would have been even higher if not for the freshman year knee injury. It happened during a Game 5  against Western Washington in Brougham Pavilion. The ball came Oddo's way, but she didn't have a solid attack try. So she went up and slapped it over the net just to keep it in play – precisely what she was supposed to do.
 
Then she came down – and it wasn't good.

 

"I remember getting it in there and then falling, and it was like, 'No, I can't get up.' I was trying to scoot out of the way so the play could keep going."
 
That was her final action for nearly a year. During the rehab process, she worked closely with Falcons head athletic trainer Jason Durocher.
 
"He was my trainer and my psychiatrist all at the same time," she said with a laugh. "He made it so much easier for me. It was always a thing where I wanted to go and do stuff, and he was like, 'No, you need to stay calm, follow the process, and make sure you won't hurt yourself later.' He was always saying, 'I'm going to get you back better than you were before' – and I think he did."
 
"SHE HAS A LOT OF TOOLS"
When Oddo did return, it was under the guidance of a new head coach. Johnson retired in January 2017, and Abbie Wright came aboard. There was the usual transition process, but they were soon on the same page.
 
"I do like what Abbie has turned the program into," Oddo said. "It was very different from my freshman year, but we caught onto the ways of Abbie's coaching and started going off from there."

 

One thing Wright picked up on in the early going was that Oddo was open to doing more or different things to become an even better player.
 
"The thing I appreciate about her is she really enjoys the process of learning and really understanding the game at a higher level," Wright said. "It has been really fun to challenge her with areas of growth that she has taken on with grace. Her development as a blocker and a passer have rounded out her overall game.
 
"She has a lot of tools in her tool kit that make executing a game plan really fun."
 
And not just physical tools, either.

 

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"Her vision and forward thinking are unmatched," senior libero Mallie Donohoe said. "She can definitely out-power other hitters. But more than that, she's constantly outsmarting them." Added senior defensive specialist Katie Mansfield, "Gabby is a consistent player who is always ready for the next play. Her mental toughness is admirable, as she never lets mistakes affect her end goal, (which is) to win."
 
A business administration major, Oddo envisions herself working in some aspect of the finance sector. While volleyball probably won't be part of her future, much of what helped guide her through her career likely will help guide her into that future.
 
"I think what keeps me going is seeing everyone else working around me," she said. "The newer people and the people who are just getting started are putting in a lot of time and a lot of effort. I want to do whatever I can to make them better in the long run and show them what they can be – that's what I strive for.
 
"If you know what you're doing and work hard at it, there's really no limit."
 
Help others. Work hard. No limits.
 
That mindset is as much a part of Gabby Oddo …
 
… as her No. 3 uniform.