CHENEY, Wash. – Eastern Washington University volleyball head coach Leslie Flores-Cloud has announced four new additions to the 2020 signing class today (May 15).
 
Katie Fleck (Thousand Oaks, Calif. / Westlake HS), Casonndrah Polo (Fife, Wash. / Fife HS) and Seiaulelei Rapanot-Alefaio (Lakewood, Wash., Lakes HS) will join the Eagles as true freshmen in the fall, while McKenna Russell (Spokane, Wash. / Mead HS) comes to Eastern after two standout years at Spokane Falls Community College.
 
The quartet join previously announced newcomers in true freshmen Sage Brustad, Ellie Garrett and Noa Torio, along with Nevada transfer Maya McClellan who joined the Eagles in the spring.
 
"I am really thrilled about the 2020 class. They are well rounded individuals and have life experience and are ready to jump in and work," said Flores-Cloud on her second signing class. "They will raise the level of play in our gym as well as add the depth that we needed last season. We are looking forward to a healthy and successful fall."  
Katie Fleck | Thousand Oaks, Calif. | Westlake HS | OH


 
Katie Fleck played volleyball all four years at Westlake High School where she was a three-year starter. The Warriors have won seven-straight Marmonte League championships and Fleck was a part of four of those.
 
As a senior, Fleck earned All-CIF-Southern Section Division 2 honors and was the league's co-Most Valuable Player. She also earned the Ventura County Star Girls Volleyball Player of the Year honor as a senior after leading Westlake to a 24-6 record and a Division 2 quarterfinal appearance while leading the team with 181 kills.
 
Fleck, a 6-0 outside hitter, also earned Miramonte League first-team honors in 2019 after earning a spot on the second team in 2018.
 
PERSONAL: Daughter of Korey and Shanon Fleck. Intends on majoring in biology at Eastern Washington with aspirations of becoming a surgical physician's assistant.
 
FLORES-CLOUD ON FLECK: "Katie has played on a very high rated junior's team nationally. She was the player of the year for the Ventura Star newspaper and was the lone All-CIF- Southern Section Division 2 member as well as the Marmonte League's Co-MVP.  She comes ready to jump in and start taking swings for the Eagles. We look forward to having her and all the athleticism she brings."

Casonndrah Polo | Fife, Wash. | Fife HS | OH/DS


 
Casonndrah Polo is a 5-7 Washington product who earned four letters in volleyball at Fife High School. She played club volleyball for the South Sound Volleyball Club, helping the team qualify for nationals in 2020.
 
As a sophomore, Polo earned South Puget Sound League (SPSL) second team honors and also received the Coaches Award for her team.
 
In 2018, she was named the 2A SPSL West MVP after helping the Trojans earn 17 shutouts, a division title and a seventh-place finish at the 2A state tournament. She was also named to the News Tribune's First Team All-Area squad and was named the MVP by her team.
 
Polo defended her 2A SPSL West MVP title as a senior, while being named to the News Tribune's Second Team All-Area squad as well as another MVP honor for the Trojans.
 
The Fife native also helped the Trojans finish eighth in the state in 2016 and fifth in 2017.
 
PERSONAL: Daughter of Temukisa and Canton Polo. Intends on majoring in business and finance at Eastern Washington.
 
FLORES-CLOUD ON POLO: "Casonndrah is going to add so much to our program. She is able to serve-receive and she can hit if we need her to. She is an amazing teammate and I'm looking forward to her bringing her well-roundedness to the program."
 
Seiaulelei "Lelei" Rapanot-Alefaio | Lakewood, Wash. | Lakes HS | MB/RS


 
Seiaulelei Rapanot-Alefaio is another Washington product who played volleyball, fastpitch and basketball at Lakes High School. Rapanot-Alefaio also played club volleyball with South Sound Volleyball Club.
 
In 2017, she was named to the 3A Pierce County All-League Second team by the News Tribune and also has an honorable mention nod and a first team selection to her name. As a senior, she played in 28 sets and totaled 76 kills while hitting at a .468 clip. She totaled 78 blocks, 41 of which were solo, and also added 25 assists.
 
PERSONAL: Daughter of Glade and Campbell Alefaio. Plans on majoring in sports medicine at Eastern Washington and is looking forward to further her knowledge on body structure and movement.
 
FLORES-CLOUD ON RAPANOT-ALEFAIO: "Lelei is going to be someone to reckon with in the Big Sky. She has size and smarts on the court and is also very versatile. On her club team, she was a six-rotation middle blocker, which is unheard of in juniors. She can pass, swing and hit from anywhere. We are looking forward to seeing where she fits as an Eagle."
 
McKenna Russell | Spokane, Wash. | Mead HS / Spokane Falls CC | MB


 
McKenna Russell is a Spokane product who prepped at Mead High School before two standout years at Spokane Falls Community College. She played two years of basketball at Mead and four years of volleyball.
 
At Mead, Russell earned All-Greater Spokane League (GSL) honorable mention honors as a sophomore before being named to the second team as a junior and the first team as a senior. She helped the Panthers qualify for the state tournament in 2015, 2016 and 2017. As a junior, she helped the Panthers finish 26-3 overall before a 27-3 record came as a senior. She was also a member of the National Honor Society in 2017 and 2018.
 
At the club level, her team qualified for nationals in 2015 and 2016.
 
Russell led Spokane Falls CC to back-to-back NWAC Tournament championships, helping the Sasquatch to finish a perfect 40-0 as a freshman and 36-2 as a sophomore.
 
Individually, Russell was named both the NWAC Offensive Athlete of the Week and the Under Armour Athlete of the Week during the eighth week of the season as sophomore. She earned second team East Region recognition as a freshman and was named to the first team as a sophomore. She also earned third team AVCA All-American honors during her final season.
 
As a sophomore, Russell averaged 3.02 kills/set and ranked third in the conference in hitting percentage, swinging .313. She also averaged .76 blocks per set and had 75 block assists to rank fourth.
 
PERSONAL: Daughter of Shannon and Ken Russell. Her mother Shannon, formerly Horn, played volleyball at Eastern Washington in 1989 where she helped the Eagles advance to their first NCAA Tournament and win a Big Sky title. She played in all 33 matches and earned five double doubles that season. The 1989 team was recently inducted into Eastern's Hall of Fame.
 
Russell is a triplet and her sisters, Allison and Lindsey, also played volleyball at SFCC. Russell plans on majoring in elementary education at Eastern.
 
FLORES-CLOUD ON RUSSELL: "We are welcoming a legacy, as McKenna's mom was an Eagle volleyball player and we are excited to have McKenna join in her footsteps. McKenna is a dynamic middle who has shown her strength by winning two NWAC championships. We are excited to bring her talent and championship mentality to our program."