Spain’s Patri Ferran will return to Anchorage three years after playing her sophomore year of high school as an exchange student at Service. Photos courtesy Austin Osborne
Patri Ferran emerged as a difference maker for the Service volleyball team when she arrived in 2023 as a foreign exchange student from Spain.
New UAA coach Morgan Hooe is hoping for a similar result.
Three years after playing her lone season in Alaska, Ferran is coming back as a member of Hooe’s first recruiting class, along with Alex Gonzalez-Orozco of Gering, Neb., Mary Nahinu of North Salt Lake, Utah, and Rachael Reyes of Northridge, Calif., also signed with the Seawolves.
“When she played for me three years ago, I remember telling Morgan they should keep an eye on her at UAA,” said Austin Osborne, the Service bench boss who joined the UAA coaching staff this year. “I could tell she had the potential to play at a high level after high school.”
At Service, Osborne was impressed with how fast Ferran picked up the playbook.
“She came to a new country and learned new offensive systems, new sets, new blocking techniques and more in just a few weeks, and ended up leading our team in blocks and hitting percentage in a really successful season for Service.”
Ferran and Co. join a UAA squad that returns eight letterwinners from its 2025 team that finished 23-6, shared the Great Northwest Athletic Conference title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
Last fall, UAA signed Alaska all-stars Indy Kmet of South Anchorage, Vailua Leaoa of Unalaska and Sophie Tapley of Kenai Central. In April, Hooe – a former UAA All-American player and assistant coach – was named the new coach, replacing Stacie Meisner, who is now at Metro State in Denver.
Among the group of four newcomers from Outside, Hooe has the luxury of knowing what she’s getting in Ferran after coaching her in club while she was in Alaska.
“She’s very athletic and has grown a lot in the last few years,” Hooe said of the 6-footer from Zaragoza, Spain. “She’s a natural middle, but she’s versatile enough to contribute at any front-row spot. I think Seawolf fans will enjoy her style of play over the next four years.”
At Service, Ferran earned second-team All-Cook Inlet Conference honors and helped the Cougars advance to the Class 4A state tournament for the first time in 19 years. She was named all-tournament at state and racked up 120 blocks and 248 kills.
Ferran (back row) and the Cougars in 2023.
“Patri is a natural athlete and a fast learner. She has a great vertical, moves laterally quickly and reads the ball well,” said Osborne, the brother of former Seawolf setter Kadyn. “She was a starter on a team with a lot of talent and she added another player other teams had to include in their game plan, which I think contributed to our overall success that year.”
Osborne said Ferran has the ability to contribute immediately.
“She can adjust well on offense and really thrives approaching off of one foot, which is something UAA prioritizes with middles, so I think she’ll be a good fit in that way,” he said. “She’s going to thrive playing at a faster pace. She also tracks the ball well on defense, putting up a solid block and getting good block touches. Aside from just hitting and blocking in the middle, she’s a well-rounded player who can serve, pass and hit from any position on the court.”
Given her positive experience in Alaska, Osborne isn’t surprised she’s coming back.
In addition to playing club for Hooe, Ferran played with or against current UAA players Emma Beck and Eleasha Sapon, along with incoming freshman Kmet.
“I know she has a lot of friends here that she met during her exchange,” Osborne said, “and I think the UAA volleyball program will be a good fit for her.”
Gonzalez-Orozco will have two years of eligibility at UAA after totaling 837 digs (3.17 per set) in two seasons at junior college program Western Nebraska.
Nahinu returns to her West Coast roots after playing at Division I program Norfolk State, where she led the Spartans with 3.18 digs per set as a true freshman.
Reyes spent her first two collegiate seasons in a reserve role at fellow Division II West Region program San Francisco State, contributing to the Gators’ 2024 squad that finished national runner-up.
2026 UAA Roster
NAME HT HOMETOWN Martina Riba 6-0 Llagosetera, Spain Vaiula Leaoa 6-0 Unalaska Lauren Hutchinson 5-11 Gig Harbor, Wash. Anna McWhorter 5-8 Monmument, Colo. Elena Hansen 5-9 Murfreesboro, Tenn. Hannah Trotter 5-9 Wauwatosa, Wis. Eleasha Sapon 5-1 Anchorage Sophie Tapley 5-8 Kenai Mary Nahinu 5-5 N. Salt Lake, Utah Trinity Byrne 5-11 Post Falls, Idaho Indy Kmet 6-1 Anchorage Patri Ferran 6-0 Zaragoza, Spain Bella Burney 6-0 Tumwater, Wash. Alex Gonzalez-Orozco 5-5 Gering, Neb. Rachael Reyes 5-8 Northridge, Calif. Emma Beck 5-11 Kenai Lee Ivakina 6-0 Varna, Bulgaria Head Coach: Morgan Hooe
Assistant Coaches: Austin Osborne, AveRee Reynolds
