Written by Sarah Bergstrom, USC blog contributor
USC athletes are more than just champions on the field, court, diamond, and pool, they're champions in the classroom as well. Each week, we will get to know one of these scholarly Trojans a little better in our student-athlete spotlight.
Name: Alice Pizzasegola
Year: Junior
Sport: Women's Volleyball
Major: International Relations
Sarah Bergstrom (SB): You grew up in Italy. How did you decide to come to USC for school and volleyball?
Alice Pizzasegola (AP): Moving here was really unexpected. When I was little, I met a professional volleyball player who had played at Stanford. She played for my hometown's professional team and she told me that I should try, after high school, to play in America. She told me it was great the way they combine school and sports and that it was good to be in a different environment. At the time, I thought, "Okay why not?" So I got the SAT book and I started preparing and I thought, "I'm not going to make it, there's no way.' (laughs) I didn't know English really at all, it was really basic. So it was really hard. But then I got my scores and sent my videos out to different universities. USC was one of the first to reach out to me and Tim [assistant coach Tim Nollan] said he would come to Italy to watch me play. So he came and watched, and afterwards told me that they had a scholarship for me. So I just ended up here.
SB: Had you been to America before you came to school here?
AP: No, it was my first time. I showed up two days before double days. I started practices and at first I thought, "Wow I want to leave". But after a little it was fine. The big change was when I started school because I met other people. I like going to school so it was better when that started.
SB: Is playing volleyball in college an option in Italy?
AP: In Italy there are private clubs if you want to play a sport. But they aren't related to colleges or any universities. You can still do both, but they don't work together. They don't help you to combine the two things like they do here. It's really rough. Sometimes people decide to have a volleyball career and so they stop studying and maybe finish later. Or, if you want to study, it's really hard to keep going with volleyball.
SB: What did your parents think about you moving here?
AP: My dad was the first one pushing me to go. He bought me the SAT book. Usually parents try to keep their kids close but my dad wanted me to go, even before I wanted to. Now I'm glad that I listened to him and I did it.
SB: What were your first impressions of Los Angeles?
AP: I remember when I landed at the airport the first day thinking, "Alright, this is happening." My assistant coach, Tim, picked me up and I remember driving back to USC seeing downtown and thinking, "Wow". The streets were so big and there were so many people. I'm from a small area in Italy, but everything in Italy is small compared to here.
SB: On the academic side of things, was it hard to transition to school here? English wasn't your first language. What was it like being in classes right away?
AP: USC has a great English program for international students so that was really helpful. I took two English classes my first semester so that was great. I think the hardest part was speaking. I was pretty good at reading and writing so class was fine. But speaking in class and participating was hard. It's gotten a lot better.
SB: It seems like you've made that adjustment just fine considering you have one of the best GPAs on your team. What's the key for you in balancing school and volleyball?
AP: I think the key is that I care a lot about both. If I want to succeed in my sport, I'm going to work hard in practice. At the same time, I'm here for an education so I want to work hard in that as well.
SB: Your major is International Relations. What made you decided on that major and what do you think you might want to do with it down the road?
AP: Picking my major was a struggle because I didn't know what I wanted to do. Even still, I'm not entirely sure. I took my first IR class my freshman year and really liked it and decided I would just stay with it. When I was little, my dream was to be the president of Italy or something like that, so this seemed like a good start if I end up sticking with that (laughs). My dream job would be working with an Italian company that has job opportunities here and somewhere else so I could go back and forth. I cannot picture myself staying in one place for too long.
Name: Alice Pizzasegola Year: Junior
Sport: Women's Volleyball
Major: International Relations
Sarah Bergstrom (SB): You grew up in Italy. How did you decide to come to USC for school and volleyball?
Alice Pizzasegola (AP): Moving here was really unexpected. When I was little, I met a professional volleyball player who had played at Stanford. She played for my hometown's professional team and she told me that I should try, after high school, to play in America. She told me it was great the way they combine school and sports and that it was good to be in a different environment. At the time, I thought, "Okay why not?" So I got the SAT book and I started preparing and I thought, "I'm not going to make it, there's no way.' (laughs) I didn't know English really at all, it was really basic. So it was really hard. But then I got my scores and sent my videos out to different universities. USC was one of the first to reach out to me and Tim [assistant coach Tim Nollan] said he would come to Italy to watch me play. So he came and watched, and afterwards told me that they had a scholarship for me. So I just ended up here.
SB: Had you been to America before you came to school here?
AP: No, it was my first time. I showed up two days before double days. I started practices and at first I thought, "Wow I want to leave". But after a little it was fine. The big change was when I started school because I met other people. I like going to school so it was better when that started.
SB: Is playing volleyball in college an option in Italy?
AP: In Italy there are private clubs if you want to play a sport. But they aren't related to colleges or any universities. You can still do both, but they don't work together. They don't help you to combine the two things like they do here. It's really rough. Sometimes people decide to have a volleyball career and so they stop studying and maybe finish later. Or, if you want to study, it's really hard to keep going with volleyball.
SB: What did your parents think about you moving here?
AP: My dad was the first one pushing me to go. He bought me the SAT book. Usually parents try to keep their kids close but my dad wanted me to go, even before I wanted to. Now I'm glad that I listened to him and I did it.
SB: What were your first impressions of Los Angeles?
AP: I remember when I landed at the airport the first day thinking, "Alright, this is happening." My assistant coach, Tim, picked me up and I remember driving back to USC seeing downtown and thinking, "Wow". The streets were so big and there were so many people. I'm from a small area in Italy, but everything in Italy is small compared to here.
SB: On the academic side of things, was it hard to transition to school here? English wasn't your first language. What was it like being in classes right away?
AP: USC has a great English program for international students so that was really helpful. I took two English classes my first semester so that was great. I think the hardest part was speaking. I was pretty good at reading and writing so class was fine. But speaking in class and participating was hard. It's gotten a lot better.
SB: It seems like you've made that adjustment just fine considering you have one of the best GPAs on your team. What's the key for you in balancing school and volleyball?
AP: I think the key is that I care a lot about both. If I want to succeed in my sport, I'm going to work hard in practice. At the same time, I'm here for an education so I want to work hard in that as well.
SB: Your major is International Relations. What made you decided on that major and what do you think you might want to do with it down the road?
AP: Picking my major was a struggle because I didn't know what I wanted to do. Even still, I'm not entirely sure. I took my first IR class my freshman year and really liked it and decided I would just stay with it. When I was little, my dream was to be the president of Italy or something like that, so this seemed like a good start if I end up sticking with that (laughs). My dream job would be working with an Italian company that has job opportunities here and somewhere else so I could go back and forth. I cannot picture myself staying in one place for too long.
SB: Sometimes with sports it seems like language is less important than maybe it would be in the classroom. What was it like transitioning to playing volleyball here with new coaches and teammates?
AP: I thought the same thing, that I would struggle more adjusting to school than volleyball because it's still the same sport. But, that wasn't true. I was completely fine understanding what my coaches and teammates were telling me, but at first I had a hard time expressing myself and showing them who I am. In a team dynamic, it's important to be able to do that. On the court it was fine, I was really energetic. But all the stuff that happens away from games, it was kind of hard to express myself and step up. But it's gotten so much better in the last couple of years.
SB: Your team, like a lot of teams at USC, has a couple girls from other countries. What has it been like to have that cultural mix?
AP: Oh I love it. When we go to the airport and through TSA, each of us takes out our passports from different countries. It's funny, Alicia, Sam and I are the international kids. It's funny because Sam hates Mexican food from here and I hate Italian food from here so we try to avoid that.
SB: Transitioning to the court, how do you feel like you've grown as a volleyball player since you started here?
AP: Definitely in my technique. Mick [head coach Mick Haley] and the entire staff, they're definitely some of the best out there in terms of teaching technique. I'm more comfortable technique-wise. I think that's the best improvement I've had. Division I is so high-intensity and at such a high-level, you really grow after every match.
SB: It's been a great start for you guys so far this season. Where do you feel like your team is at this year?
AP: I feel like we have a new identity. It's a new team with a new dynamic and new spirit. We know that we can do it and we're working really hard for that. We don't want to waste any opportunities to show that we can do it. We made a lot of changes and one of them was having a faster offense and it's definitely helping. We also changed the block technique and it's been amazing.
SB: You guys had a huge win last night over UCLA. How did it feel to get your first conference win against the Bruins?
AP: It was so much fun. We were so excited. Before the game, there was sort of a quiet intensity. No one was freaking out, no one was panicking. We just wanted to go there and play our game and see what happened. Then we won and it was so exciting. We're finally really having fun again.
AP: I thought the same thing, that I would struggle more adjusting to school than volleyball because it's still the same sport. But, that wasn't true. I was completely fine understanding what my coaches and teammates were telling me, but at first I had a hard time expressing myself and showing them who I am. In a team dynamic, it's important to be able to do that. On the court it was fine, I was really energetic. But all the stuff that happens away from games, it was kind of hard to express myself and step up. But it's gotten so much better in the last couple of years.
SB: Your team, like a lot of teams at USC, has a couple girls from other countries. What has it been like to have that cultural mix?
AP: Oh I love it. When we go to the airport and through TSA, each of us takes out our passports from different countries. It's funny, Alicia, Sam and I are the international kids. It's funny because Sam hates Mexican food from here and I hate Italian food from here so we try to avoid that.
SB: Transitioning to the court, how do you feel like you've grown as a volleyball player since you started here?
AP: Definitely in my technique. Mick [head coach Mick Haley] and the entire staff, they're definitely some of the best out there in terms of teaching technique. I'm more comfortable technique-wise. I think that's the best improvement I've had. Division I is so high-intensity and at such a high-level, you really grow after every match.
SB: It's been a great start for you guys so far this season. Where do you feel like your team is at this year?
AP: I feel like we have a new identity. It's a new team with a new dynamic and new spirit. We know that we can do it and we're working really hard for that. We don't want to waste any opportunities to show that we can do it. We made a lot of changes and one of them was having a faster offense and it's definitely helping. We also changed the block technique and it's been amazing.
SB: You guys had a huge win last night over UCLA. How did it feel to get your first conference win against the Bruins?
AP: It was so much fun. We were so excited. Before the game, there was sort of a quiet intensity. No one was freaking out, no one was panicking. We just wanted to go there and play our game and see what happened. Then we won and it was so exciting. We're finally really having fun again.
