Dig R Knights: Stella Antypa
Nov 25 | Women's Volleyball
Head coach Caitlin Schweihofer has been planning the revitalization of the Rutgers volleyball team since being hired last January with her staff assembling newcomers from around the world to join the returning Scarlet Knights in rising the ranks of the Big Ten.
One Scarlet Knight in particular is methodical about how she sets to attack her goals. For Stella Antypa, each day has her plan the work and work the plan.
"I know I am a strong player, but sometimes you don't need strength, you just need your mindset right," she explained.
To find her way around the Big Ten's six-foot-plus tall blockers, Antypa already has ideas in mind.
"I have to find my special way. I have to make clever, smart moves," she smiled noting she loves thinking outside of the box and solving problems.
on Stella's success on the court and in the classroom. Left to Right: Stella, Mom Anastasia, Dad Antonios and sister Dimitra |
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Those two traits Antypa immediately demonstrated once she got on campus.
"When I came here, I had to quarantine for 14 days," she recalled. "I thought of my room as my box. I had to stay in my box, but at the same time, I had to think outside of the box. I couldn't play volleyball, but I had to find a way to keep in shape. Laying down in your bed for all that time would be a bad idea. So I had to think outside the box with different types of exercises to train every part of my body."
Whether it was finding uses for a chair, a lamp, or a table to condition with, keeping mentally sharp using the 'Calm" app on her phone, talking with friends for fun, or taking advantage of the numerous resources available on campus, Antypa found a way to make the most of her situation
Antypa's family has also been a huge influence on her work ethic.
"My mom (Anastasia) really helped me in this part," she said of one of the keys to her adjustment to playing and studying in the United States. "She taught me from a really young age to schedule everything and time management."
"From a really young age, volleyball has been my life," she said noting if she could write her own book she would title it 'Eat, Sleep and Go To Practice'. "I was practicing all the time and I would have to schedule everything. My mom taught me that time management is the trick."
The trick allowed Antypa to excel in her math and science courses, setting up for a future in engineering, as well as free time to join her friends at the beach.
Working hard is also what got this Thesssaloniki, Greece native a chance to play volleyball at one of the highest levels in her country.
"Some of the coaches heard of me when I was a freshman in high school," she said of the start of her national team journey. "I was working really hard and started getting better and better. They saw me playing a match and called me for a tryout with girls from all over the country. I was one of 12 girls selected from all over Greece."
Making the team, however, did not mean automatic time on the floor.
"It was hard," Antypa recalled. "I had to work really, really hard to earn my position. If you are not doing well in practice, there could be another player ready to take your place. So if you want to be there, you have to really work hard to stay and earn your position every time. No slacking off."
The hard work paid off. Not only was Antypa a member of the U16, U17, U18 and U19 Greek National Teams, but she eventually served as a team captain. In 2019, she helped the U19 squad to the national championship and earned MVP, Best Attacker and Best Server.
"My favorite memory is when we qualified for the European Championship," she remembered of her 2018 stint with the U17 team. "It was really nice because the semifinals were in Greece and everyone was there cheering us up. The atmosphere was amazing."
The road to the European Championships, however, was not without the hard work Antypa is used to putting in.
"We had to win with a clean score which was the worst-case scenario," she recollected. "We had to win three sets and only had the opportunity to lose one set. We were losing 1-0 and we didn't have any sets to lose. We had to win."
Down, but certainly not out, Antypa and the Greek Junior National team rallied to qualify and ultimately finished eighth in the standings at the European Championships.
Now Antypa brings her strong work ethic in both the court and the classroom "To The Banks". The outside hitter makes sure she finds a way to balance her time between an engineering course load and preparing to help the Scarlet Knights improve in the Big Ten standings.
Engineering is in the family. Her father, Antonios, is a civil engineer back in Greece and her sister, Dimitra, graduated from college in England last year with a degree in electrical engineering.
"What I want to do in the future is maybe go back to Greece, if I don't have a huge opportunity here, and work with my father," Antypa said of her future and possibly going into the family's construction business.
However, it is business on the volleyball court as well for this Scarlet Knight newcomer.
"Our goal as a team is to become much better because we have really, really worked hard during this semester," Antpa said while mentioning working in the positive feedback from the staff in achieving this goal. "And we're going keep working hard. I want to bring this grind that we had during this semester on the court into next semester and the spring season."
Antypa noted that the Scarlet Knights may be the underdogs in the Big Ten, but implementing Coach Schweihofer's plan and working hard to work the plan and plan the work should have the Scarlet Knights' hard work being noticed.
For previous stories in the Rutgers Volleyball's Dig R Knights Series:
- Senior right side hitter - Beka Kojadinovic
- Senior right side hitter - Kamila Cieslik
- Junior outside hitter - Anastasiia Maksimova
- Senior outside hitter - Yana Kamshilina
- Junior setter - Inna Balyko
- Senior libero - Mary Kate Painter
- Graduate Student middle blocker - Shealyn McNamara
- Redshirt Freshman setter - Lauren DeLo
- Freshman libero - Madyson Chitty
- Freshman middle blocker - Tina Grkovic
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