With the 2022 season tipping off tomorrow, Chicago State head volleyball coach Tony Trifonov announced the additions of Nihal Kocakara, Lauren Martin and Julieta Sandez to the Cougars' roster.
"I'm thrilled to officially welcome Nihal, Lauren and Julieta to our growing program," Trifonov said. "All three of these spectacular freshman will add something unique to the foundation we're continuing to build with Chicago State volleyball. We're proud to bring them and their families into the Cougars family."
Kocakara, a freshman from Istanbul, Turkey, attended Doga College and competed for the Fenerbahce Sports Club. An outside hitter with rich international experience, Kocakara joins a roster also featuring Turkey native Ezgi Dokuzlar, who hails from Ankara.
Martin, a libero, joins Chicago State from Mendota High School in Mendota, Illinois. At Mendota, Martin served as a team captain and was named team MVP, while earning All-Conference First-Team honors and an All-State selection.
As a senior, Martin ranked second in Illinois for digs and 10th in service aces. She also competed at the club level for Club Fusion, Sports Performance, Illinois Volley Volley Power and VC United.
Sandez, a 6-foot-4 middle blocker from Ensenada, Argentina, comes to Chicago State from Colegio Inmaculada. The freshman also played for for El Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata for eight years.
Sandez boasts high-level experience with Team Argentina, having competed in the Under-20 World Cup in Amsterdam.
Kocakara, Martin, Sandez and the Cougars open their 2022 season tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. against Jacksonville State at the Indiana University Invitational.
About Chicago State
Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. In 1991, the Chicago State women's tennis team became the first all-black college team to amass an unbeaten season at the NCAA level. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title, also making an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet. Chicago State volleyball recorded a historic season in 2021, with Yanlis Feliz becoming CSU's first volleyball All-American and head coach Tony Trifonov earning selection as WAC Coach of the Year. During that same season, three different CSU teams earned victories over Big Ten opponents with men's soccer beating Northwestern, women's basketball upending Wisconsin and volleyball, which established a school record 17 wins and hosted a post-season volleyball tournament for the first time in program history, swept Indiana in Bloomington.
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