UW Volleyball
War sparks battle to return to the court

By Mason Kelly
Seattle Times staff

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The former Yugoslavia was a terrifying place in the 1990s.

The country that was formed after World War I was falling apart, with numerous factions demanding independence. Sanja Tomasevic, star middle hitter of the Washington volleyball team, grew up with the turmoil in Uzice, a town in Serbia and Montenegro.

Tomasevic had family living in Serbia and Montenegro, Bosnia and Croatia, but, with few working phone lines, the family could go months without knowing if they were OK. Tomasevic's father, Milutin, did what he could to shield his children from the violence.

"We were kids; we didn't know," Tomasevic said. "They would tell us that they were talking to grandma and grandpa, but actually they never did. For six months, they didn't talk to them."

NCAA Tournament Who: Stanford vs. Washington. When: 5:30 p.m. today. Where: Long Beach, Calif. TV: FSN.

Tomasevic lived a fairly normal existence, considering the times, and grew into a talented volleyball player. Unfortunately, the conflict moved closer to Uzice, and volleyball was taken from her temporarily in 1999. "They wanted us to stay away from everything," Tomasevic said of why she couldn't play the game she loved.

When Tomasevic was finally able to get back on the court, coaches couldn't call their players because all of the phone lines were down. They had to put an ad in the paper with names of the players they wanted to compete in the Junior National Championship Qualifier, in Slovakia.

Tomasevic, who practiced at home without a court to play on after her practices were canceled, decided to go, even though her sister Vesna wouldn't. Vesna currently plays professional volleyball in Uzice.

"It was really big for our country, because Spain, Portugal, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Germany were all there," Tomasevic said.

The team swept the tourney.

"We only got to practice for 10 days and they practiced for years," the junior said of the magnitude of their victory.

After going to Canada for the 1999 World Championships with the Yugoslavian national team, Tomasevic caught the eye of college coaches and wound up at Washington last season.

However, her desire to play professionally and make money almost kept her from coming to Washington. These days, she knows that pursuing her education was the right choice.

"This is the first million I will make, getting my degree," Tomasevic said.

In her second UW season, she has become one of the Pac-10's most dominant players and will lead the Huskies in the NCAA tournament's Sweet 16 today at 5:30 p.m., against Pac-10 power Stanford in Long Beach, Calif.

Tomasevic and her teammates are aiming for a victory and the school's second trip to the Elite Eight. In 1988, the Huskies lost in the Elite Eight to UCLA.

"The whole week when people ask me, 'Who are you playing this week,' and I tell them when we beat Stanford, we play again Saturday. They say, 'You mean if.' No, I mean 'when.' "

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