Karissa Cook
Position: Setter/Opposite
Height: 5-11
Weight: 145
Hometown/Residence: Santa Cruz, Calif. / Santa Cruz, Calif.
Birth Date: April 8, 1991
Club Team/Coach: Main Beach VB (Santa Cruz, Calif.) / Ralph Smith
High School/Grad Year: Harbor High School (Santa Cruz, Calif.) / 2009
College Status: Committed with Stanford University
USA VOLLEYBALL HIGHLIGHTS: 2009 – Selected to the U.S. Women’s Junior National Team.
CLUB/PREP HIGHLIGHTS: 2009 – Led Main Beach Volleyball to SCVA Southern California Qualifier Club Division championship…Selected to Volleyball Magazine Fab 50…Tabbed #25 on PrepVolleyball.com’s Senior Aces. 2008 – Named Most Valuable Player at USA Junior Olympic Girls’ Volleyball Championships in the 18-and-Under American Division after leading her club to the title…Named Las Vegas Invitational First-Team…Earned AAA rating three times as a beach player, winning three tournaments (Hula Women’s AA, Financial Solutions Women’s Open and UCSC Slug Benefit Bash Women’s Open)…Led Harbor High School to SCCAL league title…Earned SCCAL League most valuable player honor and Harbor Invitational most valuable player honor. 2007 – Named SCCAL League most valuable player…Harbor Beach Open Queen of the Beach. 2006 – Selected SCCAL League Sophomore of the Year. 2005 – Chosen SCCAL League Freshman of the Year. 2002 – Began playing club volleyball with Main Beach 14s.
PERSONAL: Born Karissa Kellie Cook on April 8, 1991, in Salt Lake City, Utah… Parents are David Cook and Suzy Cook Loustalot...Father David played basketball with the Newcastle Falcons of the Australian Pro Basketball League)...Mother Suzy played beach volleyball...Brothers are Brian (1992) and Kobi (1997) and sister is Maxine Loustalot (1990)… Has played beach volleyball for four years and is AAA rated…Hobbies include beach volleyball…Favorite food is dark chocolate with mint…Favorite book is Call of the Wild…Favorite music type is everything…Favorite musician is John Legend…Favorite professional team is San Diego Chargers…Favorite athlete is Karch Kiraly…Most admired people are her parents because “I don’t know how they put up with my brother and I all these years.”…Happiest moment in life is “There are quite of few of those, I wouldn’t change a thing about my life.”
INTERESTING NOTE: “Well, my brother is a very good up-and-coming volleyball player on the boys’ side. Just keep an eye out for him…I also was originally an alternate on this team until my cousin Lauren Cook chose not to participate this year. She also sets and we’ll also both be playing in the Pac Ten next year. It might be an interesting story later on. :)”
