Fighting altitude sickness atop Chachani Volcano in Peru this
past summer, you’d think that Chris Peña’s
thoughts might turn to some profound realizations about life.
“I have got to be honest, I was thinking about last year.
I’ve been thinking about last year since the end of last
year,” said Peña, a middle blocker on the UCLA
men’s volleyball team. “It creeps up on you and it
makes you angry.”
So much for a life-affirming epiphany; but then again,
Peña’s statement says a lot about him ““ he hates
to lose.
Peña is angry about 2003, which was the worst season in
school history, as the Bruins failed to reach the postseason. Even
as the senior spent his summer studying in Chile and traveling
through Peru, his thoughts drifted back to Los Angeles and
unfinished business.
Peña has always been accustomed to winning. He captured CIF
titles at Santa Ynez High School his sophomore, junior and senior
year, and before 2003, he experienced the tradition of UCLA
volleyball excellence. It is this history of winning that has
molded the 6-foot-6 Peña into such a fierce competitor.
“He has always played with intensity, that was the
wonderful thing about him in high school. He was always positive
and up, and it fired everyone up,” said Chip Fenenga,
Peña’s high school coach. “He’s done very
well considering he’s not a particularly tall guy. Usually
you are looking at 6-foot-8 middle blockers. He’s been
successful off of his quickness and desire.”
Peña’s height was a factor earlier this season, when
he lost his starting job to junior Allan Vince, who at 6-foot-7
offers a bit more height, which is often necessary at the middle
blocker position. However, Peña stayed focused and positive
““ much like he did while perched atop Chachani, when,
fighting extreme nausea and headaches, he was simply trying to keep
down some water and bread. Peña was not accustomed to the
altitude and stubbornly trudged up the mountain too quickly. He
paid the price 17,050 feet above sea level ““ just short of
the summit.
Just as he fought for his health atop the volcano, Peña
also fought for his starting role, putting in some excellent
performances two weeks ago to win back his starting spot. UCLA
coach Al Scates said that Peña is the Bruins’ best pure
hitter, which was evident when he notched 15 kills on Jan. 18
during the Bruins’ win at the University of Pacific. While
Peña concedes that his blocking could stand to improve, his
seven blocks in UCLA’s victory at UC Irvine Jan. 23 are a
testament to Peña’s fighting nature.
“He is so fired up right now,” Scates said.
“Chris has to play fired up, because all the other guys are
taller and bigger. He is so explosive and quick, and he has a
tremendous jump. This is the only way he can play, and if he
doesn’t play this way he’s not as effective.”
Throughout his career at UCLA Peña has picked up several
accolades: In 2003 he earned Third-Team All-MPSF honors, and in
2002 he earned Asics/Volleyball All-America Honorable Mention
honors in addition to being Third Team All-MPSF. However, if not
for Fenenga, Peña might be playing tennis or basketball and
not volleyball.
Fenenga also teaches at Santa Ynez High School. He saw
volleyball potential in Peña, and went to work on the freshman
student, who had never played the sport before.
In front of the entire class, Fenenga asked Peña whether he
had ever considered playing volleyball. Peña replied that he
considered himself a basketball player. Fenenga suggested that he
ought to consider the ramifications of his decision to ignore
volleyball.
“I said, “˜Chris do you like to go the
beach?'” Fenenga said. “Chris said he did. I
said, “˜Chris, imagine that you go to the beach on a nice
summer day, and you see some gorgeous girls, and you want to meet
them and do it in a way that doesn’t make you look like a
dork. You walk over to them and ask if they’d like to see you
dribble. You’ll get shot down. You go to another beach the
next weekend, and you see some more gorgeous girls and you approach
them and ask them to play some beach volleyball. Which sport are
these girls going to say “˜yes’ to?'”
Thus, Peña picked up volleyball quickly and from the get-go
he was a vocal player on the court ““ as he continues to be at
UCLA. But beneath Peña’s fierce on-court demeanor seems
to lie a calmer side of his personality, as the psychology major
also enjoys cooking and making things with his hands, like wooden
tables and bed frames.
“To be honest, he is a down-to-earth guy, and he tells it
like it is,” said Marcin Jagoda, Peña’s teammate
and roommate for three years. “It’s been a great
experience, we have become really close. He’s a good cook,
and when he loses in basketball he cooks for me.”
Talking to Peña and his buddies, basketball comes up quite
often. So, between his love for basketball and his love for travel,
it makes sense that after college he and Jagoda plan on giving
professional basketball in Eastern Europe a try.
On his last vacation, Peña was so close to the summit of
Chachani Volcano, which is 19,931 feet above sea level. He has also
been close to ultimate success at UCLA. Peña redshirted the
2000 season ““ the last time UCLA won a national title. No
senior has ever left UCLA without winning a national championship
and it’s a safe bet that Peña will be angry if he sets
that record.
If he has any say in it, Peña will have something more
pleasant to ponder from his next mountaintop.