Rundle Helped Westlake High Turn Marmonte Downside-Up

Brooke Rundle, The Times’ volleyball player of the year in the region, has seen it all.

One of the few four-year starters in Westlake High history, she was a freshman setter when Westlake finished last in the Marmonte League.

Since then, she has helped the Warriors win a Southern Section Division II-A title and at least a share of three league titles.

Rundle’s awards and accolades could fill a short book:

* Selected to The Times’ all-region team the last two seasons.

* School record-holder for career assists.

* Player of the year in Southern Section Division II.

* Most valuable player in the Marmonte League the last two seasons.

* Volleyball scholarship to UC Santa Barbara.

Her sense of when and whom to set and her defensive skills, most notably her barrel rolls, drew the highest praise from opposing coaches.

“I’ve never seen anybody dig the ball like she did,” said Royal Coach Bob Ferguson, whose team was swept twice this season by Westlake.

“We’d think that a ball was down, and she’d come up with it and bring her team up too.”

Her father, Westlake assistant coach Larry Rundle, saw some of the same qualities that made him an All-American player at UCLA.

“She made it look like there were seven or eight players out there sometimes,” he said. “The coaches who watched her play agree that she played three or four inches taller than she was.”

The 5-foot-6 Rundle kept the Warriors together during a rash of injuries.

Five starters were hurt throughout the season, leaving Rundle as the common thread.

She simply defined it as part of her job.

“When someone got hurt, someone stepped up to take their place,” Rundle said. “It made our team better because a lot more people got to play and we became more experienced.”

Rundle’s daily regimen during volleyball season was noteworthy.

She would come home from school and, in her only down time of the day, take a 45-minute nap.

She would return to school for a 2 1/2-hour practice and then head for the health club to lift weights for another 2 1/2 hours.

She’d return home, down a protein shake, eat dinner and do homework until about midnight.

Her grade-point average was nearly 3.7.

The Warriors swept Lakewood St. Joseph for their first Division II-A championship, but lost to Santa Margarita in the State Division II semifinals, prompting Rundle to say of her accomplishments:

“I’d trade them all if we could go back and beat Santa Margarita.”

But the ride from worst to first remains in her mind.

“From the beginning to the end, I really can’t explain it,” Rundle said. “It’s pretty amazing, I guess.”

* ALL-REGION TEAMS: A look at the first- and second-team selections: C12