It's not the size of the dog in the fight. It's the size of the fight in the dog.
Sure it's an old and perhaps overused sports cliche, but it rings true when the subject is Sun Devils junior defensive specialist Allison Lund.
At a listed height of 5 feet 6 inches, Lund is the shortest player on the ASU volleyball team, and, by her own admission, she's even a little shorter than that.
Yet coach Brad Saindon said Lund, who has 104 digs while playing in 19 matches this season, makes big contributions whenever she's on the court.
"She's a very good passer and defender, but I also just like her personality," Saindon said. "She keeps our energy up. She's just a happy person and I like that on the court."
Lund said she works hard on always trying to improve other aspects of her game to compensate for her lack of size.
"You make it up with speed, with quickness and with little stuff," Lund said. "Being quick to the ball, having a nose for the ball, being aggressive, being loud and just making sure you're known out there. That's what I try to do."
Still, Lund said her lack of height almost kept her from taking up the sport.
In fourth grade, she wanted to play soccer instead because she was small, but a little bribe from her mom helped to change her mind.
"My mom said, 'I played volleyball when I was younger, and I'll give you five dollars if you try out,'" Lund said. "So I tried out, and I loved it."
Lund didn't limit herself to just volleyball, however. She ran track and played basketball and softball as well at her Maryland high school. But Lund said she eventually committed to volleyball because she had always loved it the most.
"I always showed the enthusiasm for sports," she said. "I just think it's great because it teaches you to be a team player."
Lund came to ASU as part of a seven-person freshman class that was ranked No. 12 nationally in 2004. Now juniors, they make up nearly half the Sun Devil team that is currently 11-9 and pushing for its first NCAA tournament bid in four years.
"We're all a close-knit group," Lund said. "I couldn't imagine what it would be like coming in with only one or two other people. All of us just meshed so well. I wouldn't change it at all."
With fellow junior Sydney Donahue entrenched as the team's starting libero, Saindon has rotated Lund with senior outside hitter Nicole Morton this season - a move he said allows the team to get the best from both players.
"Nicole's strengths are attacking and blocking, and Alli is usually a better passer and defender," he said. "So by playing Alli in the back row and Nicole in the front, we get a player in the position that fits their strengths."
For Lund, she said she is happy to do whatever she can to help the team.
"I embrace my role," Lund said. "Sydney's an amazing libero. I just want to help the team as much as I can. If that means coming in the back row for Nicole, playing across the back row, or doing any of the stuff that I can do, that's great."
One of the team's highlights so far this season was a 3-1 win at UA on Sept. 22, a match where Lund found herself in the heart of the action.
As ASU rallied late to win the third and fourth games of that match, it was Lund serving the winning points in both games. She served the final five points of the third and the last six of the fourth, including a service ace in the match-clinching run.
It was the Sun Devils first win at UA's McKale Center in seven years.
"Getting to serve match point and getting that ace are huge highlights for my career," she said. "When I was in the moment, I didn't even think of the ramifications. I just thought about each serve, each point and took it point by point. When we pulled it out, it was a great feeling."
Lund added she would do whatever is necessary to help her team win.
"Every little thing can make an impact," she said. "I feel like I've helped us this season by doing those little things."
Reach the reporter at matthew.storey@asu.edu
