Leah Leventhal’s Definition of Fun
The Leventhal File
Favorite Food: Fruits
Favorite Movie: Mary Poppins
Favorite TV Show: CSI
Favorite Book: Black Boy
Favorite Band: Breaking Benjamin
Choice of Superpower: Ability to fly
From losing a five-setter to the Saint Louis Billikens in the Atlantic-10 Tournament last season to battling through a couple notable injuries in the early part of this year, the Charlotte 49ers women’s volleyball team continues to have a positive outlook, regardless of the number of obstacles they have to encounter. Whether it be singing on the sidelines or delivering a powerful cross-court kill, senior outside hitter/right side Leah Leventhal characterizes her infectious enjoyment as a key motivator.
Leventhal has emerged as an important piece to the Niners offensive attack, ranking second on the team with 104 kills in 345 total attacks prior to Friday’s rematch against Saint Louis. Last week, Leventhal posted her first two career double-doubles, presenting herself as one of the team’s three seniors on the 2011 squad.
Leventhal, an All-A-10 Rookie Team selection in 2008, identifies her role as a spark plug, the energizer of the team.
As a role player in her first year, Leventhal was an emerging player late into the season when she recorded 40 of her 58 kills in the last five matches of the year and garnered a couple of A-10 Rookie of the Week honors.
“It was kind of unexpected,” said Leventhal of her late-season emergence, resulting in her being named to the All-Conference rookie team. “It was great, but I’m the type of player that gives credit to my teammates. They were there helping me through it when I was coming in late into the season not knowing the game as much.”
Leventhal experienced how the pace of the game changed from when she was playing high school or club volleyball to playing at the collegiate level. Leventhal says that most of what she learned from her first couple years was from watching from the sidelines and acquiring knowledge from the more experienced players.
Leventhal again was used sparingly as she appeared in 50 sets in her sophomore year and 109 sets in her first two years before being inserted into the starting lineup last year, where she logged in 103 sets, collecting 145 kills and 45 blocks.
Leventhal credits her former teammate Kaitlin Knight for providing her with the advice on having fun on the court, which Leventhal points out as her biggest strength.
“[Knight] always said, ‘Just have fun no matter what you do because it will be your senior year before you know it,’” said Leventhal.
Even when Leventhal or the team experiences a bit of a struggle, she manages to maintain a positive outlook.
“With my personality, I like to think that I’m a good spark plug, where other players can turn to me,” said Leventhal. “Even if my game is not on, I can really pick somebody up.”
Leventhal notes that volleyball wasn’t inherently her main sport as she was also competing in basketball, swimming, and softball, before she started to gain interest in volleyball.
“My mother threw me into [recreational] league in the seventh grade, and I refused to play,” said Leventhal of her introduction to volleyball. “But, I tried it and dropped the rest of the sports that I was playing, and then I started getting involved in travel [volleyball].”
From there, Leventhal, a Gainesville, Fla. native, starred at Santa Fe High School, where she totaled 744 kills, 293 digs, and 213 blocks in her four years and helped her team win a district title each year.
Leventhal, one of the three players first recruited by Charlotte Head Coach Chris Redding, was first connected to Charlotte from one of her club volleyball coaches, who was a good friend of Redding.
Leventhal had a tremendous first impression of her visit to Charlotte.
“It was November when I flew in, and the leaves were yellow and red,” said Leventhal. “I’m from a really small town, so when I saw downtown Charlotte, my jaw dropped.”
Even though location factored into her decision to attend Charlotte, Leventhal says that her decision was largely weighted on her impression of the team.
“I have 12 sisters, and it was an in-sync connection,” said Leventhal of her teammates. “I felt like I was really wanted here.”
Leventhal, who considers Charlotte as her second home, finds that her enthusiasm on and off the court blends in well with her teammates and the crowd at Halton Arena.
“Playing in Charlotte, I call it more like a show,” said Leventhal. “You’re having fun at the same time. It’s like a performance, where you want the crowd to get into it and enjoy what they’re seeing.”
Leventhal, who has a strong interest in musicals, is known by her teammates to sing and dance. Leventhal says that the team’s closeness is shown by them having fun as they’re singing in the locker room or on the sidelines during a match.
Meanwhile, as Leventhal is playing for a high-spirited Charlotte team in front of an energetic crowd, she hasn’t had as much of an opportunity to play in front of her family, especially her mother, whom she considers as her biggest influence.
“She has always been there in sports, behind me 100 percent,” said Leventhal of her mother. “She isn’t able to get here [in Charlotte] a whole lot, but because of her putting me in volleyball, she’s my biggest influence.”
Now, as a senior, Leventhal has acquired the experience and turned that into producing results on the court, delivering kills, keeping the ball in play with digs, and recording blocks, but she has also used her experience as a way to mentor the younger players on the team.
“Coming into my senior year, I know how things work and how things are supposed to flow,” said Leventhal. “It’s more about no regrets and having fun, and passing on what seniors taught me when I was a freshman to my fellow underclassmen.”
Over the years, Leventhal notes that her biggest improvement came in her hitting, where she began to play more of an offensive role as she seized the starting position after Kat Hicks, one of last year’s graduated seniors, went down to an injury in the fourth match of last season.
After appearing in 109 sets in her first two seasons, Leventhal played in 103 sets, appearing in all 31 matches while recording a career-high 145 kills, averaging 1.41 per set.
“I came in very limited, where this is the one way I saw it,” said Leventhal of how she adjusted her hitting techniques. “The coaching staff really opened me up to different shots on the court and different arm swings. We’ve tweaked my approach and arm swings since my freshman year. Working with me has really improved in me becoming a better player.”
The Niners open their conference season on the road against the Billikens, looking to avenge last season’s A-10 Tournament loss and put an end to an eight-match losing streak to Saint Louis. Leventhal recorded a key block to give the Niners a 27-25 win in an epic fourth-set battle, but the Billikens prevailed in the fifth set to give the Niners another early exit.
“We got a pretty bitter taste in our mouth,” said Leventhal of the team’s response in the tough loss. “We’re going to show them that we’re a more improved Charlotte team. This time, we’re ready to take Set 5.”
As far as her future, Leventhal hopes to be able to compete in outdoor volleyball tournaments, but she looks to pursue her career elsewhere. Leventhal, who is majoring in social work while holding a minor in psychology, will be going to Africa in the spring to do international social work in addition to going to graduate school. While Leventhal doesn’t necessarily consider this to be a volleyball ending, she aspires to make choices that will help her advance in her career.
3-1 Green Light 