Naomi Whitehair finds right fit on UTEP volleyball team

Former Monument Valley Mustang standout Naomi Whitehair prepares to pass the ball for the University Texas El Paso volleyball team. Whitehair played one year at New Mexico Military Institute before transferring to UTEP. (Courtesy photo)

FORT DEFIANCE, Ariz.

University of Texas-El Paso junior defensive specialist Naomi Whitehair has worked hard to get where she is at today.

“I followed my dream,” said Whitehair, a 2012 graduate of Monument Valley High School in Kayenta. “Playing NCAA Division I volleyball was a dream of mine. I love playing volleyball. My ultimate goal is getting an education. I want earn my college degree. I want to go home on the Navajo Nation and work as a nurse. A hospital is being built at my hometown of Kayenta. I want to work at the hospital they are building in Kayenta. My parents raised me to be what I am today.”

UTEP head coach Holly Watts said Whitehair has done a good job as the Miners continue to improve.

“Naomi works hard every day at practice,” she said. “She does a good job at her position as a defensive specialist. She is a very good defender.”

Whitehair earn a letter as a sophomore transfer last year. After graduating from Monument Valley, she played one year at New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell, where she was a starting defensive specialist.

“I always wanted to attend UTEP,” she said. “During my freshman year at NMMI, I thought about playing at UTEP. In high school, attended a volleyball camp at UTEP and I liked the campus and the program. I wanted to be part of the volleyball program.”