Women’s Volleyball: Rio Hondo honors five sophomore transfers

Rio Hondo sophomore transfers (bottom left-right): Jennifer Martinez, Denisse Sanchez, Nadine Oronoz, Faith Wada, and Faith Lee.
Rio Hondo sophomore transfers (bottom left-right): Jennifer Martinez, Denisse Sanchez, Nadine Oronoz, Faith Wada, and Faith Lee.
May 24, 2023

Rio Hondo College women's volleyball head coach Teddi Esko has announced that five members of her program will continue their careers at four-year universities.

Sophomores Nadine Oronoz (Whittier College), Faith Wada (The Master's University/Santa Clarita), Denisse Sanchez (University of Saint Katherine/San Marcos), Jennifer Martinez (John Melvin University/Crowley, Louisiana), and Faith Lee (UC Irvine) were all honored at a signing ceremony on campus in front of their teammates, family, and friends.  

The five all played key roles in helping lead both the Rio Hondo indoor and beach volleyball teams to some of their finest seasons in school history.

The 2022 indoor season saw the Roadrunners ranked as high as No. 12 in the state. Rio Hondo finished in second place in the final South Coast Conference standings with a 9-3 record and advanced to the second round of the Southern California Regional Playoffs.

This past spring, the beach volleyball squad qualified for the Southern California Regional team playoffs for the first time since the program's inception in 2016. The Roadrunners opened the season with an amazing 9-0 record and won 13 of its first 14 matches on their way to an impressive 15-4 regular-season record.

"I'm so proud of our 2023 transfer class," said Esko. "They have worked very hard in the classroom and on the court during their time at Rio Hondo. It's an honor to be recognizing our Fab 5, they have made in invaluable impact on our program and paved the way for future Roadrunners.  I know each of them will be a great success at their future universities and volleyball teams."

2022-2023 Transfers:

  • Nadine Oronoz-Whittier College-indoor (Degree in Business)
  • Faith Wada-The Master's University-beach (Degree in Kinesiology)
  • Denisse Sanchez-University of Saint Katherine's-beach (Degree in Exercise Science)
  • Jennifer Martinez-John Melvin University, Louisiana-indoor (Degree in Exercise Science)
  • Faith Lee-University of California, Irvine-academics (Degree in Chemistry/Pre-Med)