STILL WORTH WATCHING : Five Years Later, These Athletes Are Fulfilling Their Early Promise : Melissa Schutz

There is no doubt Schutz has delivered on the athletic promise she displayed as a 14-year-old in the Orange County Volleyball Club in 1991. Consider:

* She helped Newport Harbor to its first State Division I title as a senior in 1994.

* She was a two-time All-Orange County selection by The Times and a three-time All-Southern Section and all-state selection.

* She was the first girl to graduate from Newport Harbor with 12 varsity letters and earned a volleyball scholarship to Colorado.

“I really liked the team and I wanted to get out of California,” she said of her college decision. “California is beautiful, and I think I want to live there for the rest of my life, but I wanted to experience something different for a little bit.”

Schutz, 19, made an immediate impact for the Buffaloes last season, starting the first 13 matches at middle blocker and hitting .330, which set a freshman school record.

But Schutz suffered a knee injury in September and had to sit out the rest of season, watching her team advance to the first round of the NCAA tournament, where it lost to Northern Iowa.

“It was really sad, because I don’t really like sitting on the sidelines. I wanted to be out there playing, but I think I learned a lot just watching,” she said.

Schutz had surgery in October and has been working on rehabilitation since then, staying in shape by swimming and riding a bike. She began running last week and expects to practice with the volleyball team during spring training.

“Now I’m just really concentrating on getting my leg back,” she said.