Daily 49er, May 21, 2019

LONG BEACH STATE UNIVERSITY | VOL. LXX, ISSUE 52 | SUMMER 2019

SOARing to new heights

2 NEWS

SUMMER 2019 | DAILY49ER.COM | CITYD49ER@GMAIL.COM

INSIDE

ON THE COVER

THE

NINER Farming under the wire page 4

SOAR helps welcome the incoming class of Fall 2019 over the summer.

Photo by Asjia Garner

Daily 49er Editorial Office Phone (562) 985-8000

1250 Bellflower Blvd., LA4-201 Long Beach, CA 90840-4601 Austin Brumblay Editor in Chief eicd49er@gmail.com

News Editor

Sports Editor

Local Cambodian doughnut buisness is so sweet page 6 & 7 Voting alone is not enough page 10

Editor’s note: Welcome incoming students Hello new students, The Daily 49er would like to welcome you, the largest incoming class ever, to Long Beach State.

This special issue samples some of the most well-received content from the 2018-19 academic year.

The story-telling and visuals of the articles are written by and about fellow LBSU students or Long Beach community members.

The Daily 49er is a student-run newspaper and the official publication of record at the university.

What gets published is a direct reflection of truth, dedication, timeliness and the student voice.

The 2019-20 academic year is an important milestone for the university and the Daily 49er as both turn 70 years old in the fall.

To commemorate, there will be a 70th anniversary special issue released in September that will detail major campus events throughout the university’s history. Multimedia packages including audio, video and photographs will also be in a special section on the Daily 49er website.

And to celebrate the Daily 49er’s birthday in November, a special issue inspired by the original 1949 newspaper will be released.

Big changes are always occuring at the ‘Niner, and this year is no different. As journalism continues to shift towards multimedia platforms, this publication too has followed that trend. With the launch of the new website, expect daily online content and interactive multimedia.

As a platform for students to speak their mind, the Daily 49er is always looking for contributors for print and digital content.

The Daily 49er will resume its regular print publication schedule Monday August 26. Until then, visit daily49er.com and social media @daily49er for coverage of LBSU and Long Beach.

To a SOAR’n summer, Austin Brumblay, Editor in Chief

Business Office Phone (562) 985-1740

Paula Kiley Mulitmedia Managing Editor paula.kileyy@gmail.com

Alex Dansereau cityd49er@gmail.com Mark Lindahl sportsd49er@gmail.com

Arts & Life Editor

Andy Lizarraga artsnlifed49er@gmail.com

Opinions Editor

Perry Continente opedd49er@gmail.com

Special Projects Editor

Samantha Diaz spprojd49er@gmail.com

Special Projects Editor

Hannah Getahun spprojd49er@gmail.com

Advertising Account Executive

Copy Editor Design Editor

Eddie Infante d49ads@gmail.com

Rachel Barnes Alejandro Vazquez

Photo Editor

Ryan Guitare

Social Media Editor

Brenna Enos

Video Editor

Aubrey Balster

Assistant Sports Editor

Ralston Dacanay

Assistant Sports Editor

Manuel Valladares

Social Media Assistant

Cristal Gomez

Social Media Assistant

Celeste Huecias

Web Master Design Adviser Content Adviser Advertising and Business Adviser

Samantha Hangsan Gary Metzker Barbara Kingsley-Wilson Jennifer Newton

Editorials: All opinions expressed in the columns, letters and cartoons in this issue are those of the writers or artists.

The opinions of the Daily 49er are expressed only in unsigned editorials and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the journalism department or the views of all staff members. All such editorials are written by the editorial board of the Daily 49er.

Letters Policy: All letters and email must bear the phone number of the writer and must be no more than 300 words.

The Daily 49er reserves the right to edit letters for publication in regard to space.

Follow us @daily49er

NEWS 3

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By Saad Kazi Staff Writer

I

n 1952, sheep were still roaming the fields of Long Beach State College, a small school that took hours of driving to find. A couple hundred students took classes on the newly formed campus each semester in barracks and converted apartment complexes.

It was around this time that Harold Katz graduated with a master’s degree from the University of Chicago. The 27-year-old World War II veteran needed an escape from the cold weather and to begin his search for a teaching job. His older brother, Arthur, suggested California.

Teaching positions were scarce, a possibility Katz wasn’t prepared for when he set off for Long Beach. Further delaying his search, the state felt he wasn’t qualified to teach, despite having minored in education, and instead required that he enroll in an audio-visual education course.

“California did not make it easy for people from out-of-state to be credentialed,” Katz said.

Forty-five years after his brief encounter with the little-known school, Katz decided to return to Long Beach State. This time, he was newly retired. He was a senior citizen. And when he walked into his first class, he could have been mistaken for the professor — until he took a seat with the other students.

“I live to learn, and I learn to live,” he said. “My life sort of goes on through the process of learning.”

Since the late ‘90s, Katz has regularly taken courses as part of Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, a program that allows senior citizens to take any class on campus with the consent of the instructor. In the past, he has taken courses in art with his late wife Barbara and courses in the physical sciences. “[Each year,] I look into the catalog and I say, ‘what’s interesting now?’” he said.

This semester, Katz is enrolled in Chris Burnett’s Political Science 423 American Presidency lecture. For someone who can recall Franklin D. Roosevelt’s fireside chats, the class might not be as much of a learning experience as it is a chance to relive history.

“I’m just blessed to have him,” Burnett said. “Older students bring a lot of real-world knowledge, and above all, they’re really interested in learning.”

Every day, Katz takes his usual position in the front and center. Off to the side of the room, a transcriber types nearly every word that is said during the discussion.

Because for Katz, who is hard of hearing,

RYAN GUITARE | Daily 49er

Harold Katz continues his education journey at Long Beach State in Chris Burnett’s American Presidency lecture.

PROFILE

Never too old to learn Harold Katz has been moved by education his entire life.

At 94, he remains in the classroom.

the input from the other students is just as important as what Burnett is saying. “[Burnett] is very good because he elicits student participation,” Katz said. “A lot of teachers just want to lecture.”

His love for the classroom isn’t limited to the student desk. Though he never fulfilled his dream of becoming a full-time teacher, education has always been his passion.

After his time at LBSC, Katz taught at a private school, a one-year stint he didn’t enjoy. Since schools were looking for people with degrees that he didn’t have, he had no luck applying to other teaching jobs either.

“I got to know the unemployment office pretty well,” Katz said.

Nevertheless, his educational background and analytic skills helped him in various positions throughout his career.

In the mid-1950s, Katz handled inventory for a Texaco warehouse in Signal Hill.

But after the state built a freeway through the location, he left to work for Revell, a toy company that quickly fell due to competition.

Later, during the early stages of the aerospace industry, Katz joined North American Aviation, where he did cost estimating and advanced planning for 13 years. Before being laid off, he helped the company during the Apollo project.

Katz got the chance to work for University of California, Los Angeles in the ‘70s after getting a master’s degree in Public Administration. Though he wasn’t teaching, he was given a more authoritative role, working in the Office of the Chancellor analyzing campus improvements.

Katz officially retired in 1991. But while his career ended, his drive to learn did not.

“It’s sort of a self-generating approach,” he said of his ability to keep moving.

Katz, who turned 94 last month, plans to keep on participating in OLLI, “so long as I’m able to get to campus and have the ability to absorb the education.”

He added that he feels lucky to have his two daughters, seven grandchildren, and 13 great-grandchildren for support.

“Motion is life,” Katz said. “Without motion, well, where are you? The alternative, [which] is not very good.”

Katz still lives in the same Lakewood house he bought with money he received from the GI Bill almost 65 years ago.

Around that time, Arthur and his wife gave Katz an oak tree as a housewarming gift, which he planted in his front lawn.

Three weeks ago, that tree fell.

While Katz was home, he didn’t hear the impact. He was too busy moving.

This story was originally published March 21, 2019.

4 MULTIMEDIA PREVIEW

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Jose Luis Ornelas harvests cilantro at his family farm in Bell Gardens.

AUSTIN BRUMBLAY Daily 49er

COMMUNITY

Farming under the wire A father and son farm under the Southern California Edison power lines is at risk of losing it all.

By Paula Kiley, Hannah Getahun and Austin Brumblay Staff Writers

W

here the Los Angeles and San Gabriel rivers meet, under the Edison electrical line that runs alongside the Los Angeles River, swaths of brown one story homes and gray industrial buildings are disrupted by patches of green. These gardens sit on land that cannot be built upon because of the towering wires that block the space above. As a result, some plots under the line

are used for urban farms.

The Ornelas farm is one such farm. Edgar Ornelas and his father Jose Luis Ornelas grow, cut and prepare herbs, fruits and vegetables. But unlike most farmers, the backdrop for their operation is the bustling city of Bell Gardens.

The two-man operation sells food in a number of surrounding cities by participating in local farmers markets such as the Long Beach Bixby Knolls market on Tuesdays. They also use their produce to sustain their own family.

Jose started his farm years ago after moving from Jalisco, Mexico, where he had previously been a farmer. After establishing the

PAULA KILEY | Daily 49er

Edgar Ornelas bags produce to be weighed at the weekly farmer’s market held at Bixby Park. small plot of land they acquired, Edgar started helping with the business.

Edison has begun requiring that some farms in the area grow their produce in pots, which restricts the amount they can cultivate. The father and son worry their operation will get more expensive and they may lose their family farm forever.

This story was originally published March 25, 2019.

Editor’s note: The full version of this story is told through a combination of words, photos and video. Each medium offers action and emotion for this multidimensional story that cannot be conveyed through only one of these methods.

“Farming under the wire” premieres Thursday on daily49er.com.

ART & LIFE 4

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TECHNOLOGY

/u/ MarcoMaroon Marco Murguia Vidales, a moderator for LBSU’s subreddit, steps down after two years of building the community.

By Ralston Dacanay Assistant Sports Editor

W

hile Marco Murguia Vidales will blend in with the masses when his name is called at the Jack Rose Track this commencement season, thousands of Long Beach State students have likely seen his online alias — MarcoMaroon.

After two years of overseeing broken escalator complaints, degree planning inquiries and endless mascot suggestions, Murguia Vidales is hanging up his digital green shield as a moderator for LBSU’s dedicated subreddit.

Since age 12, he’s been known as MarcoMaroon on internet messengers, such as AIM and MSN. The art student’s hat tip to his favorite color also blends his first name with the name of his favorite band. The username seamlessly captures his openness in being himself and meeting new people.

During the spring of 2017, Murguia Vidales often spent his freetime on forums dedicated to specific topics on the website, Reddit. Still fresh off of a transfer from Chaffey College, he took a break from his usual self-deprecating memes to explore r/CSULB. With only 220 members at the time, it was outclassed in numbers compared to other California State University subreddits and saw very little interaction.

“It was a really barebones subreddit,” Murguia Vidales said. “[There was] only one moderator (u/mystimel), the original owner, and she never did anything.”

As a member of many anime and video game subreddits, Murguia Vidales saw potential in LBSU’s forum. With the honorable shield added to his username, Marco-

Maroon went to work on his goal — to make the LBSU subreddit a “hub of information” and a lively community.

By all accounts, he has.

In addition to adding links to the sidebar and flairs to posts, Murguia Vidales introduced weekly check-in discussion posts.

Generating 20 to 30 comments on average, the “It’s Sunday, how are we doing?” posts were important to him as a big advocate of mental health.

“Even if they’re not going to interact with you, just someone knowing that someone is there is a huge relief,” Murguia Vidales said.

Murguia Vidales said that his favorite part about being a moderator was getting to know more of the community.

“The more time you spend [in] your later years in college [on] your upper divisions, you just become part of a smaller circle of students so you don’t get a chance to leave that little world until after you graduate,” Murguia Vidales said. “Being a part of a larger subreddit community, you kind of become exposed to a lot more people.”

The main duty of the moderators is to observe posts, enforcing the rules fairly and transparently. Every so often, there will be a post aside from the usual questions about the campus or classes that sparks some controversy.

Life as double major in art history and studio art was tasking enough. However, while juggling an internship and independent study with the University Art Museum, working at his brother’s clothing store and fixing computers and phones on the side, Murguia Vidales set aside times within the

Ralston Dacanay | Daily 49er Marco Murguia Vidales, or /u/MarcoMaroon on Reddit, steps down as a r/CSULB subreddit moderator as graduation approaches.

week to answer other students’ questions. A lot of them were about financial aid.

“As someone who has dealt with Brotman Hall way too many times, I think I have some experience,” Murguia Vidales laughed.

In addition to having friends who had FAFSA issues, Murguia Vidales once had his transfer acceptance revoked for a period due to his transcripts being fumbled by the university. After sending numerous emails and speaking to multiple people from E. James Brotman Hall, he was accepted.

After two years as moderator, Murguia Vidales has watched the LBSU subreddit grow to 4,300 members.

Heading into this semester, he let the other moderators know that he would be stepping down, and officially did so with a farewell post in late April. Murguia Vidales said the subreddit should be managed by those still involved with LBSU. “I know that graduating, I didn’t really

want to stay a mod,” Murguia Vidales said.

“I feel it’s more fair to everyone for it to be a community that’s led by other students that are still here rather than me, who is not here afterwards.”

He said he’s comfortable leaving it to the two remaining active moderators, u/ bibliophile332 and u/CSULB_lecturer, a freshman student and professor at LBSU, respectively.

Murguia Vidales plans to stay in touch with the friends he’s made on the LBSU subreddit, and continues to be a moderator for r/UnexpectedNaruto. As he plans to pursue work at museums in the next chapter of his life, Murguia Vidales remains proud, yet modest about fulfilling his goal.

“Not to diss myself or anyone who’s on [r/CSULB], but I don’t feel like you’ll be missing out on anything if you’re not on the subreddit,” Murguia Vidales said.

This story was originally published May 20, 2019.

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ART & LIFE 7

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Clcokwise from far left.

Alan Ek is usually in charge of frosting all of the doughnuts, while the other baker, Tony Gea, makes and fries all the dough.

Owner Huey Behuyuh (left) and daughter Amy Behuyuh (right) acknowledge a customer leaving the store.

Pauly Som, 49, is one of the eight employees that runs Simone’s Donuts. Every employee is from either Cambodia or Thailand and came to the United States to work.

Cambodian made, California ‘raised’ A batch of second generation Cambodian-Americans find their place in the increasingly competitive Long Beach doughnut scene.

By Paula Kiley and James Chow Staff Writers

S

ince age 12, the shop manager spent her time before and after school at her parents’ doughnut shop on East Stearns Street and Palo Verde Ave-

nue.

Now 26 years old, Eap specializes in customized doughnuts, creating delectable designs ranging anywhere from brightly colored birthday spreads to Star Wars inspired divorce party doughnuts. Eap’s unique creations are an example of ways that traditional Cambodian doughnut shops have tried adapting to the increasing competitiveness of the Long Beach doughnut market.

According to Yelp, Long Beach is home to 37 doughnut shops. If you choose one of these shops at random, there’s a good chance the owner is Cambodian.

Much of the concentration of Cambodian doughnut shops in Southern California can be attributed to Ted Ngoy, otherwise known as the “Donut King.” Ngoy opened scores of doughnut shops throughout the mid-1970s and ‘80s, and sponsored visas for hundreds of Cambodian immigrants escaping the Khmer Rouge.

More than 140,000 Cambodians came to the United States as refugees after the fall of the Khmer Rouge regime in 1979. In the wake of the homeland devastation plagued by both Pol Pot’s regime and U.S. bombings in the country, Cambodians entered the States and relied on the country’s humanitarian programs for sponsors to help jumpstart their

new lives in a foreign nation.

Born and raised in Cambodia, Eap’s father, Kong Eap, sought refuge in the United States in 1980.

“My dad got sponsored by a family in Michigan through the Red Cross to come to America,” Melissa Eap said. “He lived in Michigan for a year and a half, but … he wasn’t having much luck with finding a job and making a living there.”

The U.S. Census cites the first wave of Cambodians to Long Beach in the 1950s when Long Beach State enacted a student exchange program between the United States and Cambodia. Decades later, the presence of an already-established Khmer-speaking community enticed Cambodian refugees to enter the city and open up businesses. “[My dad] kept in touch with a friend who came to California and his friend told him,

ASIJA GARNER AND PAULA KILEY Daily 49er

‘Come to California. They have a lot of jobs and opportunities available here,’” Melissa Eap said.

And what’s more American than setting up a doughnut shop?

According to Sinara Sagn, a business navigator for the nonprofit social services agency United Cambodian Community, Cambodians who entered the U.S. in the 1980s set up doughnut shops due to the sweet treat’s easyto-make process and low cost.

“After the Khmer Rouge, a lot of Cambodians moved here and [taught] their friends and family how to sell doughnuts, how to make doughnuts and they began to [open up] stores.

That’s how it spread,” Sagn said.

Despite the pastry’s popularity among the Cambodian community, the doughnut industry is not very widespread in Southeast Asia.

Sagn said there are only a handful of unique doughnut businesses in Phnom Penh, a stark contrast to the blooming amount in Southern California.

The market offered refugees with limited English the opportunity to succeed in America.

Heang Khauo, 44, owner of Donut Island on

the corner of East Wardlow Road and Cherry Avenue, became involved in the doughnut industry through his parents, who had friends in the business.

“When we first came here from Cambodia, my parents’ English was limited, [and] so was mine when I was little,” Khaou said. “[But doughnut shops are] one way of not needing to know too much English. People would just come here and point to whatever doughnut they wanted.”

The Cambodian entrepreneur has been in a business-savvy environment almost his whole life. After his family was sponsored in September 1981 to enter the country, Khaou’s parents opened up a sewing factory in downtown Los Angeles prior to establishing Donut Den in Torrance, California ,just in time for the doughnut renaissance.

A 1992 U.S. Census report counted 26 doughnut shops in Long Beach alone at the time, which accounted for the steadily increasing number of Cambodian-owned businesses in the city.

But long gone are the days of the doughnut heyday. Opening shop in a competitive environment with a high concentration of dough-

nut shops left businesses like Knead Donuts & Tea and Donut Island to tread in choppy waters in their infancy.

After opening Knead Donuts & Tea in 2017, the Behuynh family experienced trouble early on with reeling in customers.

Her family set up shop along Seventh Street in an ever-changing location that once primed Gladstone Donut Shop and then a transitional housing complex. After struggling for its first few months, Knead found its footing after a glowing review from Brian Addison at the Long Beach Post.

Previously, the Behuynh family owned Khmer restaurant, Siem Reap in Cambodia Town for 26 years before closing it in 2015.

Not only was the restaurant a staple in the community, but it also served as a staple in the family’s assimilation to the U.S. “Growing up, I was trying to assimilate between American culture and our Asian culture,” said daughter Amy Behuynh. “There were language barriers at the restaurant, but you just try to work with the scenario … I was born here, but it’s very hard for us, especially for older people to learn a new language and then like assimilate to American culture.”

Behuynh is just grateful to be working in her family’s doughnut shop in Long Beach, where she is able to meld her Cambodian and American cultural identities.

For her, adding unique ingredients is a reclamation of her Cambodian identity. Departing from the traditional raised and cake doughnuts, Behuynh, alongside her father Huey, infuse an Asian zing in their pastries, most notably a Thai Tea filling in their creme brulee. She’s also trifled with the traditional French cruller by infusing the icing with pandan, a common Southeast Asian flavoring ingredient.

“I try to put a little more Asian dishes [to show our] Asian roots for Americans to try too,” Amy Behuynh said. “Long Beach is so chill. They’re willing to try anything new.”

For the new Cambodian American-raised doughnut connoisseurs, experimenting with the iconic ring pastry is what sets them apart from chains.

Introducing creative items to the menu keeps the community buzzing. It’s what helped secure Knead Donuts & Tea a spot on LA Eater’s “20 Most Delectable Doughnut Shops” list.

Despite the ever-changing landscape of the doughnut market in Long Beach, what remains the same among family-owned Cambodian doughnut shops is the value of family.

“You know how [it’s like in Asian culture,] we value family, sometimes a bit too much,” Amy Behuynh said. “But [my parents have] sacrificed so much to bring us here so I try to remember that.”

The Eap family is the third family to own Simone’s Donuts and owner Kong Eap has expressed his desire for his daughter to carry the shop forward. After being trained by her father and gaining more insight on the ins and outs of the family business, Melissa Eap has gained a greater appreciation for the work her parents have put into supporting the family.

“Once I started to learn more about how much responsibility [my dad] had. How much he was doing and working to keep the shop together, I was like, ‘Holy crap, it’s a lot of work’,” Eap said. “And I think that knowing that he trusted me enough to take on that work, made me feel like I have more of a purpose.”

This story was originally published March 25, 2019.

8

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YOUR FUTURE AWAITS

Connect to the Beach Road Map Check out links to key university information that you’ll need in each of your years here. The Beach Road Map is meant to guide you through your time here and beyond.

FREE Gift when you open a Free Checking Account at Southland Credit Union Long Beach!*

*While supplies last. Membership subject to eligibility.

OPINIONS 9

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POLITICS

Counter protesters at Bluff Park, in response to the United Patriot Nation Front a group that has been linked to white nationalism. The UPNF canceled their protest plans and had no presence at the event.

PERRY CONTINENTE Daily 49er

Voting alone is not enough Direct action is necessary to create change in local politics.

By Carlos Villicana Special Projects Editor, Class of 2019 covillicana

I

t’s noisy outside. Megaphones, safety vests and posters of all colors litter the crowd of marchers. Hundreds of voices chant the same phrases in unison, walking down the unevenly paved streets of Long Beach as traffic is jammed. Some honk in annoyance, others in solidarity.

To longtime residents of the 562, this is a familiar scene. It’s a protest — and it works.

Demonstrations like these never really stop being present, nor should they. This is democracy in action.

We’re less than a year away from the United States presidential primary and a little over a month away from determining who will represent over 926,000 Californians as a member of the State Senate — crafting the legislature of the world’s fifth largest economy. As many debate who will sit in the Oval Office for four years, half of our city council seats will be up for election.

You may have been conditioned to believe your vote doesn’t matter, but this is wrong.

Voting is good, but it isn’t enough. If you give a damn about making anything better, you need to do more than vote. Your voice matters at every level.

There is precedent throughout global history for concerned residents taking up direct action to make a difference. Protests, sit-ins,

letter writing, phone banking campaigns and packing the chambers of a gubernatorial body are all forms of direct action, which have been catalysts for real economic and social change. We know of civil rights movements led by African American and gay activists in the 1960s. But there is a local history of direct action, which has resulted in changes that could benefit the diverse communities of Long Beach.

Throughout the last year, the Long Beach City Council debated many items that mobilized locals of all political leanings to demand support for their side.

High-profile examples include the elements of the People’s Budget Proposal finding their way into the city budget and Measure WW passing in November 2018 after being placed on local ballots because of a voter-driven petition. Because of local activist efforts, Long Beach will have a fund to provide legal assistance to immigrants and workplace protections to prevent the abuse of hotel workers.

It is important to remember there will be losses, as there are with anything. Attempts to place rent control initiatives on ballots have failed. But these should not dissuade us from standing up for our communities. Loss is an opportunity to learn, not quit. Quitting is the only true loss.

Voting is important because it can give power to those who truly want to make the world fair for all. “Can” being the operative word.

Local and state officials who we will elect within the year to come will court votes based on their personalities and proposed policies, but once in office these individuals are not bound by contract to fulfill their promises to us — the public.

It is because of this that we must be ready to stand up, walk out and make it clear we are unflinching in our demands for policies, which will benefit our communities. As we prepare to vote in a series of upcoming elections, remember public servants are meant to work for us, not the other way around.

For me, these policies do include rights regardless of citizenship, renter protections and accountability for injustices committed by law enforcement. A healthy community does fight for a legal defense fund and workplace protections and chase white nationalist gatherings out of our city. These successes may have never happened without the mobilization, action and sacrifice of concerned locals.

My only regret is that I have not done my part to mobilize for the progressive causes I believe in, but that will change. If you can, I encourage you to do the same. Our voices will be more important than ever in these tumultuous times.

A better world is possible, but it needs you. It needs us all.

This story was originally published April 29, 2019.

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SPORTS 11

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By Bryan Aparicio Assistant Sports Editor, Class of 2019 BryanAparicio_

K

yle Ensing leaves his mark wherever he goes. Not every volleyball player gets a Twitter fan club account made after them and not every player gets called a “once in a lifetime player” by their high school coach.

I witnessed the Ensing effect during a trip to Six Flags Magic Mountain when an employee noticed my 2018 Long Beach National Championship shirt. After finding out I went to LBSU, he told me he went to high school with Ensing and saw him play. “We grew up together and it’s crazy to see what he’s accomplished,” he said.

With his arm rested on the media table inside the Walter Pyramid, Ensing relaxes after putting equipment away. Even after an animated practice, Ensing walks over in good spirits, eager to talk about his love for volleyball.

Fresh off a national championship season, the senior opposite/outside hitter is determined to do whatever it takes to go back-to-back and cap off his collegiate career.

“We’re definitely that caliber of a team to go back-to-back,” Ensing said. “That’s not to be cocky or anything. It’s definitely confidence and the work that we put in the gym.”

He has a right to brag, though, as Ensing is tied this season with fellow senior outside hitter TJ DeFalco for kills with 134.

With feats including 2018 AVCA First Team All-American and 2018 NCAA All-Tournament team, it’s no surprise that Ensing can hold his own with anyone on the court. His 6-foot-7, high-flying frame makes him a dominant force on both ends of the floor.

Volleyball has always been a part of his life as his mother used to play in high school, but football and basketball were his first passions growing up.

Up until the ninth grade, Ensing played as a wide receiver in football, but decided to give up the sport after a devastating injury forced him to make a tough decision.

Ensing went up for a catch during a game and while airborne, a defender undercut him. Trying to break his fall with both hands, his body turned completely upside down. He braced for impact but landed awkwardly, breaking both his wrists, and ending his football career.

“My mom was like, ‘Alright it’s either basketball or volleyball from now on,’” Ensing said.

AUSTIN BRUMBLAY | Daily 49er

Senior opposite Kyle Ensing celebrates a point with teammate senior setter Josh Tuaniga.

PROFILE

The

Ensing

effect

The opposite hitter goes from a devastating injury to a key part of the men’s volleyball national championship team.

Beginning his freshman year at Valencia High School, Ensing played both basketball and volleyball, then fully committed to volleyball going into his sophomore year.

Watching the success of his older brother Eric Ensing and experiencing a growth spurt convinced him to stick to volleyball. “[Kyle] walked into the gym and he must have grown six inches over the [summer] break,” Valencia High School head coach Kevin Kornegay said. “Usually when you’re around someone, you don’t notice it. He walked into the gym and I was like, ‘Woah!’ and he became an immediate impact for us starting his sophomore year up until his senior year.”

Although Ensing lost his CIF championship matchup senior year, that season was a testament to how great he could be and how much more he could improve.

“Kyle is a once in a lifetime player,” Kornegay said. “This is my 25th year coaching and a guy like that doesn’t walk in the gym every season … we’ve had some really good teams in this program, but he as an individual talent was the best that ever walked in the gym.”

His skill on the court and accomplishments throughout his high school career created a buzz around his peers, so much so that someone created a Twitter account in 2013 known as the “Kyle Ensing Fan Club.” The account, “@EnsingClub,” has a profile picture of Ensing’s face as a child plastered over the face of Jesus Christ.

Whether he’s digging a ball, spiking it down for a kill or going up for a block, Ensing leads by example. The consensus on him from from his peers is that while he isn’t so much of a vocal leader, he leads by showing the proper tools needed to become successful.

“He’s got a great serve, he plays great defense and he has good size … he brings so much to us in every area of the game,” Long Beach head coach Alan Knipe said.

“He’s a really easy kid to have in the program, and a really easy teammate for all the guys in the program regardless of how talented he is.”

Although talented in almost every area on the court, Ensing’s brother says he’s still looking forward to what’s next for Kyle.

“It’s insane to say,” Eric said. “Kyle’s grown a lot more physically and he’s being a lot smarter … improving in all ways he can, and I can’t wait to see that from him.”

Long Beach will play at 7 p.m. Friday against Penn State in the Walter Pyramid.

This story was originally published February 7, 2019.