Set on Sato : She’s the Latest in Extraordinary Volleyball Line at San Diego State

No matter how she looks at it, Liane Sato is from a long line of volleyball setters.

Her family has produced a succession of fine setters and so has her university.

Indeed, Sato is the latest in a succession of extraordinary setters at San Diego State, which has had three All-Americans in the last seven years--Wendy Wheat, 1978 and 1979; Laurel Brassey, 1981 and Kim Takacs, last season.

Setting also runs in Sato’s family. Her four brothers are setters.

Sato, a 5-foot 3-inch junior transfer from UC Santa Barbara, has needed all the skills she acquired--from both her brothers and her coaches--with the young SDSU team this fall. It has been particularly important for her to blend in, because the setter runs the offense.

According to SDSU Coach Rudy Suwara, Sato has made the transition.

“Liane is the bright spot on the team,” Suwara said. “I think she may be the best defensive player in the nation. She’s so quick, she can dig the hardest spike and pop it up. She can just outrun the ball. You’ll think, ‘How can she get that ball?’ and she does. She does it every game.”

Sato, 21, began volleyball as a sophomore at Santa Monica High School largely because of her family’s interest. Setting was a natural because of her brothers.

“It’s the thing we do,” she said. “We all set.”

Gary Sato, an assistant coach with the U.S. men’s national team, played at UC Santa Barbara and formerly coached at Pepperdine. He is married to Takacs, Liane’s predecessor as SDSU’s setter.

Another Sato, Glenn, played at Loyola Marymount, and Scott Sato, is in his senior year on the San Diego State team. The youngest Sato, Eric, played with the junior national team last summer.

Like her three brothers before her, Liane earned the starting setter’s job at Santa Monica High as a sophomore. In her senior year, 1981, Santa Monica won the state championship.

Out of high school, Sato was recruited by several schools, including San Diego State, but chose UC Santa Barbara. She started as a freshman and sophomore on teams that qualified for the NCAA playoffs.

In 1983, she decided to transfer to San Diego State, which has finished in the Top 10 for the past seven years. Sato would not to elaborate on her reasons for the transfer.

Under NCAA rules, Sato had to sit out the 1984 season, which was a frustrating experience for Sato who had played extensively the past five years.

“I went to all the practices, I lifted weights, went to study hall and came to the games,” Sato said. “It made me more antsy about wanting to play, to do well.”

Sato returned to a team that had lost three starters to graduation and a fourth to a pre-season injury. Part-time starter Maria McCallum is the only senior on the roster.

Obviously, it was difficult to figure exactly what to expect for the Aztecs.

“I wasn’t making any big predictions because I hadn’t played with the girls before in game situations,” Sato said. “They had all grown up together, as freshmen, sophomores and juniors, and I was just coming in.”

The Aztecs started strongly, winning 12 of their first 14 and taking the championship of their tournament, the Aztec Invitational, for the first time. Since then, SDSU has won six of 14 matches.

SDSU, 18-10 and ranked 14th nationally, will try to reverse that trend against third-ranked UCLA (15-3) at 7:30 tonight at Peterson Gym.

Sato attributed the Aztecs’ recent woes to several factors.

“First, I think we’re not concentrating very, very intensely,” she said. “Also, we’re playing good teams (their last seven losses have come against Top 20 teams). And there’s not one person everybody can depend on to put the ball away consistently for us.”

Through it all, Sato has been a steadying force, Suwara said.

“At the beginning of the year, we were doing very well, because of Liane,” he said. “Now we’ve hit some bumps in the road and the kids who were used to winning got discouraged. I think Liane will help with that. In the worst of times, she’s kept up a positive attitude. That’s the sign of a mature person.”

Sato didn’t always accept bad times with such equanimity. There was a time when she wasn’t always able to maintain such a positive attitude, she recalled.

“I don’t think I’m as harsh as I used to be,” Sato said. “When somebody makes a mistake, I don’t fly off the handle. I’ve matured, probably. And I don’t think it would be very helpful for the team for me to be screaming at somebody on the court.”

Suwara said before the season he and Sato talked often about her on-court demeanor.

“We had her tone it down,” he said. “She did that well. She showed good self-restraint. Finally, it got to the point where she was so quiet we had her turn it up again, but keep it positive. It’s helped make her a better player, I think.”

She has had plenty of occasions for unhappiness, Suwara said, because of the Aztecs’ bad passing.

“So many times she has had to run all over the court because we make bad passes,” Suwara said. “She turns bad passes into good sets as well as anyone in the country.”

Sato already has made an impact on opposing coaches. At the recent National Invitational Volleyball Tournament at UCLA, she was named to the all-tournament team--an unprecedented accomplishment for a player from a team that finished seventh, Suwara said.

She should also be considered for post-season honors, Suwara said, but for one shortcoming.

“Liane has better control on the ball than anyone,” he said. “But several others have an advantage on her with blocking, because of her lack of height.”

Sato can’t do anything about her height, but she is working to improve in other areas, she said.

“I need to work on strategy, knowing where to set the ball, who’s playing well, things like that,” she said.

Knowing about strategy should come in handy for Sato. She is majoring in physical education, with a minor in psychology, and plans to be a high school coach and counselor. This would give her a chance to remain involved with the sport, she said, and pass her knowledge to younger generations.

She would also be able to continue living up to her family heritage.