Lauren Fendrick
Lauren Fendrick (born March 20, 1982) is an American beach volleyball player. She competed in beach volleyball at the 2016 Summer Olympics with teammate Brooke Sweat. In 2017, Fendrick and new teammate April Ross placed second at the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships.
Lauren Fendrick | |||||||||||||||
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Personal information | |||||||||||||||
Nationality | American | ||||||||||||||
Born | San Diego, California, U.S. | March 20, 1982||||||||||||||
Hometown | Carlsbad, California, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||||||||||||||
Weight | 165 lb (75 kg) | ||||||||||||||
College / University | UCLA | ||||||||||||||
Beach volleyball information | |||||||||||||||
Current teammate | |||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Early life and education
Fendrick was born March 20, 1982 in San Diego, California.[1] She grew up in Carlsbad, California.[2] From a young age she showed an interest in sports, competing in basketball, tennis, volleyball, and softball.[3]
Fendrick attended UCLA and graduated with magna cum laude with a degree in communication studies.[1] She then went on to study law at University of Southern California graduating in 2010. Fendrick passed the bar,[1] but as of 2016 does not practice law.[3]
Volleyball career
Fendrick played indoor volleyball at UCLA from 1999-2002 where she led the team in kills her last two seasons. During her time playing for UCLA, Fendrick was honored as a 2002 U.S. Volleyball Association (USVBA) All-American.[4]
Following her time at UCLA, Fendrick joined the AVP tour as a beach volleyball player.[4] In 2014, she teamed with Brooke Sweat. The pair qualified with the U.S. Olympic Beach Volleyball Team to compete in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. Sweat and Fendrick qualified as the second team for the United States, ranked below Kerri Walsh-Jennings and her partner April Ross, by ranking as one of the top seventeen teams in the world.[2] At the Olympics, Fendrick and Sweat finished in last place for Pool A, eliminating them from the tournament.[5]
In spring 2017, Fendrick partnered with Ross for the upcoming volleyball season. The pair finished second at the 2017 world beach volleyball championships in Vienna, Austria. The finish made Ross and Fendrick the first U.S. team, female or male, to medal at the event since 2011.[6]
Fendrick temporarily teamed with Nicole Branagh in 2018 while Branagh's partner, Walsh-Jennings, recovered from injury.[7] In May 2018, Fendrick entered the Association of Volleyball Professionals in Austin, Texas with Loyola Marymount collegiate athlete Sarah Sponcil.[8] After taking a break from volleyball in 2019 for the birth of her first child, Fendrick returned to competition with partner Sara Hughes with the aim of earning a spot in the 2020 Summer Olympics.[9]
Personal life
She married volleyball coach Andrew Fuller in February 2013.[1][3] In June 2019, Fendrick gave birth to her first child, a daughter.[10]
References
- "Lauren Fendrick Volleyball". Team USA. Archived from the original on December 27, 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
- Soffian, Seth (10 June 2016). "Pride for Southwest Florida Olympian Brooke Sweat". news-press.com. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
- Waltemeyer, Carrie. "Who is... Lauren Fendrick". NBC Olympics. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
- "Alum Fendrick to Compete in Olympics". UCLA Bruins. 12 June 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
- Scott, Nate (2016-08-11). "U.S. women's beach volleyball team eliminated from Rio tournament". USA Today. Retrieved 2016-08-12.
- OlympicTalk (August 5, 2017). "April Ross, Lauren Fendrick take surprise silver at beach volleyball worlds". OlympicTalk. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
- "News - Fendrick and Branagh out to make memories in Fort Lauderdale". fivb.com. February 23, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
- Hong, Joy (June 10, 2018). "Alum Lauren Fendrick mentors current Bruin, talks pro career in beach volleyball". dailybruin.com. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
- Luke, Steven (January 23, 2020). "Carlsbad's Lauren Fendrick Embarks On Postpartum Olympic Comeback". NBC 7 San Diego. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
- Lawrence, Blythe (June 8, 2019). "Beach Volleyball Star Lauren Fendrick Welcomes First Child, Won't Defend World Silver Medal". teamusa.org/. Archived from the original on June 8, 2019. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
External links
- Official website
- AVP Player
- Lauren Fendrick on Twitter
- Lauren Fendrick at the FIVB beach volleyball database
- Lauren Fendrick at the Beach Volleyball Database
- Lauren Fendrick at Olympedia