Deacon Sports Xtra: Helping Steer the Ship
11/2/2022 9:24:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Academics and a program on the rise attracted standout setter Andrea Fuentes to Wake Forest over a year ago.
Andrea Fuentes never envisioned leaving the University of Missouri, but after playing three seasons and achieving her Bachelor's degree, she began looking at options.
Wake Forest became the most attractive option, and it just wasn't because of the familiar color scheme. It was the unmatched academics coupled with a chance to make an impact on a rising volleyball program under head coach Randi Smart.
"I figured I would finish my career there (at Missouri), and I still have a soft spot for them," Fuentes noted. "However, when the opportunity presented itself for me to pursue a Master's program, I was looking for somewhere that held an impressive reputation, academically. That was important to me. I paid particular attention to good academic schools.
"Then, I also asked myself, 'where is someplace I could make an impact?' When I spoke with Coach Smart and Coach (Becky) Hong, they posed it as a challenge. This is going to be hard and it is going to be a grind, but we're trying to make something here. They suggested I could be the ignition for something bigger. I loved the challenge and was up for it."
Fuentes is second on the team in total assists, and led the Deacs last season with 1,045 in that same stat category.
"She is the most competitive player in the program, hands down," Smart said. "She is caring and empathetic. She's fiery. You can't teach what she brings. I knew that in the recruiting process, just from talking to her on the phone, with her goals and what she wanted in a program. It has been a snowball effect.
"Because of Andrea, we're doing some things we didn't think we could do. Because of her, the standard in the gym is that we compete and play to win. She also knows how to be the quarterback of the team. She touches base and reaches out. The things she does to show her teammates she cares — she cares as hard as she competes. You can't teach that. She means a lot."
The Demon Deacons earned a pair of Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Big Four wins in front of a packed house at Reynolds Gymnasium in early October of North Carolina and NC State.
"Just the atmosphere in our gym during those matches was electrifying," Fuentes said. "That's something that's very dear to our hearts. In terms of the wins, it shows how much we've grown from last year. The fact that we were able to bounce back and beat both of those teams this year just speaks to our growth as a program. It shows how good this team can be. We hope to continue to prove ourselves to people moving forward."
The Deacs this season are a unique mix of impact veterans and talented newcomers, blending both a highly-touted freshman class with a couple of key transfers.
"Being a part of this team the last two years, I've seen incredible growth from many people that are much younger than me," Fuentes said. "I've been part of some incredible experiences in my undergraduate career, and being part of this team is something I'm most proud of.
"Our coaching staff has done a great job of recruiting, and this freshman class is going to be phenomenal."
As Wake Forest Volleyball begins its ascent in the ACC, Fuentes gives a ton of credit to Smart and her staff.
"Everything has been a combination of personnel and coaching," she said. "I'm an avid believer that a coach can make or break a program, and Coach Smart is making a program here at Wake Forest. When you have success that positively impacts recruiting, and you attract a higher number of good players to your program.
"Then, the portal is very popular, and it's a great way to turn around a program in a short period of time. Coach Smart is already making a huge impact. She's approached it the right way and we're seeing the results."
Fuentes first started playing volleyball as a 5-year old in Puerto Rico. Her father was a minor leaguer in the Boston Red Sox organization, and athletics has always been a common denominator in the family.
"Volleyball in Puerto Rico is huge," Fuentes explained. "I fell in love with it and continued to play. I realized I was pretty good by the time I was 12-13 years old. I went to a couple of qualifiers here in the mainland to see where I stood.
"This is something I wanted to do long term, and NCAA volleyball became the goal."
Fuentes is in the top-10 in Wake Forest program history in career assists, despite just being with the team these two seasons. Recently, against Pittsburgh on Oct. 28, Fuentes reached over 4,500 career assists, combined between Missouri and Wake Forest.
"It's something that wouldn't be possible without all of my teammates I've been with since I was a freshman," she said. "It starts with a good pass, then hopefully a good set and then someone who can terminate the ball. That's the best you can hope for. I had a good setters coach at Missouri and now I get to work with Coach Smart, who was a talented setter herself."
The future for Wake Forest Volleyball is very bright, Fuentes contends, that she hates that her time with the program is coming to an end after this season.
"I know this is only the beginning for this program," she said. "This is such a fun era to be a part of at Wake Forest. There's times I'm bummed that I'm only going to be here for two years.
"I think getting to be a part of the program and seeing this growth makes you wonder what's to come. You just want to be a part of it. But I'm old and I'm going to have to accept it."
