At first glance, outside hitter Andrea Tauai of the New Mexico State volleyball team seems like just another solid addition to an already talented team – but a deeper look shows the junior transfer is not your average top-level collegiate volleyball player.

Tauai, originally from Tauranga, began her journey to the United States after graduating high school in 2012.

Andrea Tauai in action.

She played volleyball for two years at Hillsborough Community College in Tampa, Florida, before bringing her talents to NM State this season.

Tauai finished her tenure at HCC in 2013 by being named a first team Junior College All-American along with grabbing the Sun Coast Player of The Year award.

Transitioning from playing in a field of junior college teams to a Division-I NCAA programme is no easy task – especially for someone that left her home country and family to play collegiate sports in the United States.

Tauai was required to learn the culture of America, both on and off the volleyball court.

'The culture here is different, not only off the court but on the court as well,” she says.

'Here [in the US] they train hard every single day and in New Zealand it's not that strict.

'It was different, but I am used to it now. The speed of volleyball in Division One is definitely a big difference as well. How fast we play here and the competition with taller and faster girls makes it a challenge.”

Being a good player on a junior college team is no easy task, but Tauai wasn't just good, she possessed intelligence on the court that put her a step ahead of her opponents, thus moulding her into the world-class teammate and person she's become today.

Aggie head coach Mike Jordan and his staff kept an eye out for Tauai when she was part of the NJCAA All-Tournament Team in 2012 and 2013.

'We were looking at the junior college stat leaders and saw how good her attack numbers were at Hillsborough Community College and decided to contact her coach to see if we could get some video of her,” says Jordan, on how Tauai was recruited to NM State.

'We were really impressed with what we saw in her.”

Tauai finished her run at HCC with a .372 hitting percentage and was also ranked fourth in NJCAA women's volleyball for kills in 2013 with a total of 593 on 1264 attacks.

She's made an immediate impact since transferring to NM State. Her two best matches this season were played at the Pan American Center and came against then No. 30 California on Sept. 6, and at the time 14^th-ranked Colorado State on September 12.

In her home debut against California, Tauai finished with 16 kills, which is still the most kills for any Aggie in a match this season, along with 14 digs for her first double-double at NM State.

In her match against Colorado State, Tauai racked up 13 kills and 10 digs to collect yet another double-double.

'I was nervous against Cal as it was my debut game on our home court,” says Tauai.

'I was fired up though, so it gave me an extra spark to play against those high-ranked teams. It makes me play a bit harder.”

So far on the season Tauai has 67 kills, sixth-best on the team, to go along with 85 digs, which is fifth best on the team.

Her season high for attack percentage came against Brown on Sept. 20, when she tallied a .357 percentage. She is tied for third on the team for double-doubles on the season with her two.

Tauai believes that playing as a team is a necessity to reach the ultimate goal of putting victories on the scorecards for NM State.

The firm belief in each other's skills is what moulds the team together to play at a high level for the all-important Western Athletic Conference games that are scheduled ahead for NM State.

'Staying focused in practice ensures we all hold each other accountable. The standard of what we put into practice definitely shows during the games,” says Tauai.

'If we train hard and work hard during practice, then it will show on the court.”

Copy curtesy of NM State Athletics Media Relations.