Ebangwese fueling Syracuse’s success with spirit and energy

Against Georgia Tech last Sunday, the scoreboard read 20-19 in the second set as head coach Leonid Yelin challenged a call that would impact the momentum of the set. With so much at stake, many players stood waiting for the call, but Santita Ebangwese did not.

The SU junior danced to the beat of the music, helping to ease the tension in the Women’s Building.

“I’ve always been a boisterous, loud, a very active child,” Ebangwese said. “Into adulthood it hasn’t really changed much.”

When Syracuse (14-7, 6-2 Atlantic Coast) takes the court, there’s no denying the identity of its vocal leader. Ebangwese’s positive energy has fueled Syracuse’s success this season, as she always looks to both pick up teammates after mistakes and congratulate them after big plays. While she said she doesn’t know where she gets it from, she carries it with her everywhere she goes.

“I don’t know where it comes from,” Ebangwese said. “I was born that way, and I’ve always had a lot of energy.”

On the court, Ebangwese has been crucial both offensively and defensively for the Orange. She’s second on the team in kills with 183, averaging 8.7 per game. Ebangwese also boasts the highest attack percentage — kills minus errors, divided by attack attempts — on the team at .394.

Defensively, as starting middle blocker, Ebangwese has nearly twice as many blocks (107) as the second leading blocker, Christina Oyawale (56).

Whenever Ebangwese skies for a kill, she takes two strides up to the net, glides through the air and mashes the ball, often into the ground. Then, the Orange rejoice with its trademark celebration: The team looks at one another in the circle, both hands in the air, before flicking their wrists down as if they were blocking a volleyball. They let out a yell, “Wah-ooo!”

“It’s fun when everyone is playing well and you’re having long rallies,” sophomore outside hitter Kendra Lukacs said, “the level of volleyball is elevating.”

The Orange has already doubled last season’s win total, with 12 games remaining on the regular season schedule. The competition within the team has ramped up the fight for playing time.

“We all want to play good volleyball,” Lukacs said. “Winning really helps our team spirit.”