The Hofstra volleyball team is one big happy family, but Seniors and co-captains Luisa Sydlik and Laura Masciullo have formed a special bond which extends off the court.

“We were very close since our freshman year,” Masciullo said. “We came here together as internationals, barely knew English, especially me, so we went through the whole four years, the whole program together. We had good moments and bad moments together on and off the court and we are always there for each other.”

“I think our relationship grew over the four years we have been here. We became roommates which I think brought us even closer. It’s a friendship I value very much and I think that helped us to get through these four years,” Sydlik said. 

However, when the team is on the road during the season, Masciullo and Sydlik do not room together, so they can bond with other members of the team.

“We only room together throughout the year in the dorms,” Sydlik said. “As soon as we are with the team, we try and stay away from each other to spend time with other girls and get to know them.”

Head coach Emily Mansur recognized the leadership abilities of the pair, and named Masciullo and Sydlik co-captains of the team this season.

“Because we get along very well together, it’s easier to understand each other,” Masciullo said. “We are always on the same page in front of our team so it’s like a unit. Instead of having two different voices that say two different things, it’s just two people that agree on things.”

Even though they are roommates and leaders of the team, they try and leave everything on the court and not talk about volleyball in the room unless they have to.

“There are moments where we take our mind off volleyball and talk about something else,” Masciullo said. “You focus so much and you are always in the gym talking about it, but other times we want to hear other opinions.”

But that does not hurt their play on the court. When Masciullo and Sydlik are playing together, they always push each other to do better.

“We are really good with each other, but we are also able to tell each other if we have an issue,” Sydlik said. “We can talk about it without one being angry at the other. I think this is great on the court because that’s what we need in order to get better.”

The friendship that the girls have off the court makes their chemistry on the court even better.

“The chemistry between a setter and a hitter is extremely important like being able to look at [Sydlik] and be like ‘hey set me this ball, I got you’ and having the setter actually trusting you and setting you that ball… Just knowing the other person will do her job because she looked at you in the eye and she is saying ‘yes I got it’ is extremely important,” Masciullo said.

“I think it’s something that we built throughout the four years, getting to know each other better we know exactly when we look at each other what is an important situation when we need each other’s help,” Sydlik said. “I feel like there’s a connection between us that you might not see but it’s there.”

Even though the support between Masciullo and Sydlik is immeasurable, they also receive tremendous support from their families back home.

“They have always been my biggest support through all of my career since I was very young,” Masciullo said. “Since I came here to the United States, they have never missed me play. They are in front of the laptop every time that we are playing, no matter if it is 7 p.m. or 3 a.m. in Italy. They are absolutely there every time.”

For the first time in their collegiate careers, Masciullo and Sydlik’s families caught a game in person on Sunday, Nov. 17, on senior day.

“I’m super excited my family is coming, and that is a moment that I have been waiting for [for] four years,” Sydlik said. “Having my family here was always my dream.”

The Pride is now getting ready to host the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Tournament as they look to defend their CAA Championship on their home court.

“I am never going to forget what I felt like last year when we won the CAA and we were in Charleston and not at home, not in front of our crowd,” Masciullo said. “Imagine that feeling in front of our crowd, in front of our parents, in front of our people, in front of the people that every day support us on and off the court. Being able to give it back by giving them a great win, keeping the trophy here at Hofstra would be absolutely amazing.”

“Being a senior and having the opportunity to play here is very special,” Sydlik said.

This season, Masciullo became the second ranked player in kills in Hofstra history at 1,703. Sydlik is the reigning CAA Setter of the Year and the third player in the program with at least 4,000 career assists and 1,000 career digs.

However, Masciullo and Sydlik are always team oriented and do not focus too much on their own achievements.

“It is a nice reward for all of our hard work,” Sydlik said. ““It’s not something that I am thinking about when I am playing. I am thinking about how to make the team win and how to perform well.”

As Sydlik and Masciullo play their final matches in a Pride uniform, they hope to have left a big impact on this program.

“Since our freshman year we said it doesn’t matter what is going to happen when we leave this program it’s gonna be better than when we stepped into it. We did not want to be just members of the team, we wanted to be somebody that helped improve it,” Masciullo said.

“I learned a lot and I think we made a difference here in this program,” Sydlik added. “I think it is something we can be proud of.”

The bond that Sydlik and Masciullo formed on and off the court has created a fantastic, unique and multi-dimensional relationship.

“What we built here is something I will never forget, and I hope we can keep this up,” Sydlik said. “I hope that [Masciullo] stays in New York so we can be close, but even if we [live far away] we will always find our way.”

They both pinky-promised that they will stay in touch no matter where they end up in the future.

Image courtesy of Cam Keough