UAF nets Susitna Valley grad

TALKEETNA — As a senior, Emily Hartley helped the Susitna Valley Rams win their first volleyball state championship in school history.

Hartley also boasts another feat unique to Su Valley. Earlier this year, Hartley signed her National Letter of Intent to attend the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and the 2014 Su Valley graduate will play college volleyball for the Division II Nanooks.

“It’s a unique situation,” Su Valley volleyball coach Chad Valentine said of Hartley’s opportunity to make the move from the Talkeetna area school to college athletics. “We’ve had a couple cross-country runners, kids on the ski team [compete beyond Su Valley], but for the court sports, this is a pretty big deal.”

Valentine, Su Valley’s head volleyball coach for the last 26 years, only remembers a handful of Su Valley alumni progressing to the college level.

“I’ve had girls go on to play college ball, but most of them were walk-on situations,” Valentine said.

The destination is also a big deal, he said.

“The biggest thing, it’s in-state,” Valentine said of Hartley heading to UAF.

Hartley, a three-year starter and two-time winner of Borealis Conference Player of the Year honors, is one of four freshmen currently listed on the Nanooks roster. At 6-foot-1, Hartley is also the tallest player listed on the roster.

During her three years as a starter, Hartley recorded more than 800 kills and 100 total blocks. She has the talent to play NCAA volleyball, but Valentine said her intangibles cannot be overlooked.

“She is an incredible teammate,” Valentine said. “That almost overrides her skill ability. She can make a team better being an incredible teammate. That’s the biggest thing that stands out. Does she have the skill to back it up? Yes. But her biggest attributes are her attitude and personality.”

Nanooks head coach Mallory Larranaga echoed those sentiments in her statements included in a press release issued by the UAF athletics department.

“Emily is one in a million,” Larranaga said in the release. “As cliché as that may sound, she is truly someone that positively influences others. What a blessing it is to have her finally join our team. We will look to Emily to be a big presence at the net defensively.”

Valentine said he’s excited to see her progress with the Division II Nanooks.

“It will be neat to see her challenged,” Valentine said. “I think she’ll surprise herself.”

Valentine said the UAF coaches have had their eye on Hartley for a while, and also see Hartley, a middle blocker in high school, making a transition to the outside.

As a senior, Hartley recorded 397 kills and posted a .463 hitting percentage for the Rams. She also had 112 service aces and 48 total blocks. She helped Su Valley win back-to-back conference titles in 2012 and 2013, and the school’s first 2A state volleyball title in 2013.

Hartley was also active in basketball and track while at Su Valley, and was a three-year member of the school’s National Honor Society.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.