USC Athletics

Meet Hannah Martin, a freshman for the USC beach volleyball team. This spring, the Women of Troy added five newcomers to a squad of seasoned veterans who have their sights set on the school's fourth national championship on the sand. Get to know each of the newcomers a little better.

How are you liking USC so far?
There have definitely been a lot of adjustments, as everyone says, just with friends being completely different, the school system, and managing your time with volleyball, but I think it's been a good transition. And the team helps a lot with that transition.

You worked with USC assistant coach Gustavo Rocha in the past. Did that impact your decision to continue your career here?
I actually committed to USC at the end of my sophomore year, and at that time Gustavo was at Pepperdine. I thought that he was off to Pepperdine and would stay there for awhile, but I found out during my senior year that he would be switching to USC. So I told my friend that was committed to Pepperdine like, "Oh, I took Gustavo now!" So it was definitely a plus, but I made the decision before I knew he was coming to USC.

Do you have a favorite class that you've taken here, or are taking now?
I would say my adolescent psychology class has been really interesting, because it's a little bit more specific than my other psych classes. Adolescent psych gets into development, and that's really interesting to learn about. And I like the professor a lot, too.

Is psychology a field that you plan on going into after graduation?
I'm not sure. I definitely want to keep my options open, because there are so many different things you could do. I was thinking about going into HR, but I was also thinking about teaching, which is why I thought adolescent psych would be cool.

Do you plan on continuing to play beach volleyball after graduation? What are your long-term athletic career goals?
I think, as a freshman, that's a goal that is really far away, and I think USC has been a great taste of the high standards of performing as an athlete. Not only being an athlete, but also the lifestyle, and that has been a good learning experience for me. So I want to take it year by year, or even day by day, and see how I'm liking it. But my long-term athletic goals would just be to grow as a person and keep learning in every aspect–with fitness, how to take care of myself, with how to become a better player and a better teammate, and a better friend for everyone around you. I think that there are a lot of aspects of the sport that you can improve on, so that would be my long-term goal.

What hobbies do you have outside of playing volleyball?
I like to play music. I have a ukulele here, so I get my hands on that whenever I have time. I play a little piano, not that much anymore, but I am a huge ocean girl, so I love going to the ocean and getting on a longboard when I can too.

Where's your favorite beach to go to?
My favorite break would be Pipes Beach in San Diego, because it's a very slow wave, and it's very mellow. A lot of the surf breaks [elsewhere] will be a little localized, and everyone's like, really catty [laughs], and the surfers are all competitive. So I would say Pipes is a really mellow vibe, and so I like going there the best.

I saw that your parents both played basketball in college. Did you always know that you wanted to play volleyball? Did you play other sports?
Yeah, so I grew up playing basketball. I remember when I was probably seven, my parents were like, "Okay, if Hannah makes this shot, then the kids can have dessert!" I was like, "Alright, here we go…" and I launched the ball up there and somehow made it. So ever since I can remember, we were playing basketball. We grew up on the East Coast and moved to California when I was four. The West Coast has a big influence on volleyball–it's way more centralized, especially in Southern California, so I think that's what shifted me over. I made that decision going into my freshman year of high school. I was like, "Okay, basketball or volleyball?" when I was playing competitively for both already, so I remember making the decision because of my sister playing [volleyball] too.

What is your favorite memory from playing volleyball in high school?
My favorite memory is from when I went to Tahiti as an alternate with Sammy Slater, who is on the team, and just getting to experience that environment of traveling internationally for your sport, and playing against different countries, gave me a taste of what it would be like if I were to continue playing volleyball after college. I thought that it was a really cool experience to be meeting all of the people from different countries in that one spot.

What are you most looking forward to this season?
Winning, first and foremost! I think we have a really great group of girls, and everyone feels really connected–I think we can take that and run with it. Just growing as a team, I really feel like each day we are getting one percent better, and that improvement is really rewarding. Just coming together as a team, when we're ready to compete, is what I'm most excited for.