Kathleen Patiola Tapaita Lavisi Uluave was born on May 4, 2005 with big eyes so she was affectionately nicknamed "Lulu," meaning owl in Tongan.
Ironically, those big eyes were something that immediately jumped out to head coach Heather Olmstead when her staff scouted Uluave.
"We loved her ability to read the game. She has good eyes," Olmstead said.
Uluave grew up on the North Shore of O'ahu. In true Hawaiian fashion, coach Olmstead says Uluave has a really happy-go-lucky attitude.
She loves to sing, dance in traditional Polynesian styles, surf, and crack jokes.
Her coaches and teammates rave about her sense of humor.
"She likes to joke. She's always played tricks on me even from when I was recruiting her," Olmstead said.
She's the youngest of five and all of her siblings are athletes.
An old Facebook post from Uluave's mother, Caroline, shows just how involved this 'ohana ("family" in Hawaiian) was/is in sports.
Her brother Alama played football at San Diego State and then signed with the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in May of 2023.
Her brother Semisi played at Cal Berkeley from 2015-2018 and her sister Sina played volleyball at Wichita State, Toledo, and SMU. She is now a graduate assistant at SMU.
Her brother Siupeli also played football at Punahou and received several offers from small colleges, but the COVID-19 pandemic canceled his senior season.
Following in each of their footsteps, she decided to go to Punahou School, a private school located in Honolulu where Heisman trophy finalist Manti Te'o and former U.S. President Barrack Obama also attended.
There, she was a star athlete in volleyball and track & field. She holds the record at Punahou for longest discus throw and the 2nd longest shot put throw in school history.
By the end of her high school career, she was one of twelve athletes inducted into the 2024 Hawaii High School Athletic Association Hall of Honor.
In November of 2022, she announced her commitment to play volleyball at BYU via Instagram...on the beach of course.
Hours after this announcement, she helped Punahou advance to the state semi-finals with a win over Mililani. She finished the night with 19 kills, 16 digs, and a walk-off service ace.
Surprisingly, Uluave is the first of her siblings to come to BYU, but chose to do so because of the family atmosphere.
"BYU showed me that I can be taken care of off and on the court. All throughout camps and visits, it really just felt like a home away from home," Uluave said.
This feeling of home became personal for Uluave when on her official visit she was shown an old video showcasing the international brand and fandom of BYU. It showed fans all over the world talking about why they love BYU Athletics.
Uluave cannot describe the feelings that rushed over her when she saw the familiar faces of 'aunties and uncles' from her community back home in the video.
Looking back at this experience, Uluave recalled, "This is the place to be, I knew I belonged here, this is where I want to be."
These feelings were strengthened when she realized her values of family and BYU's values of family were one and the same.
In late June, the Uluave family said aloha (goodbye for now) to their youngest daughter and sibling as they dropped her off at Heritage Halls, one of two on-campus living options for incoming freshmen.
Here in Provo, she's found another home away from home at a local Polynesian YSA ward with friends, family, and a handful of BYU football players.
In a family full of athletes including a brother who used to snap the ball to Tua Tagovailoa in Miami, Lulu believes that her siblings would all agree that she's the best athlete in the family.
"I only say that because I got to learn from them [her siblings] growing up. They paved the path for me. I would not be the person, woman, or sister I am today without them," Uluave said.
Growing up in this environment was seemingly an inevitable recipe for success.
By eighth grade, Uluave was already receiving Division I offers, but Division I volleyball is a lot different than Hawaii volleyball.
"The difference is that us Hawaii girls have to be more versatile in our talents and have more tools in our toolbox," Uluave said.
"We don't have a have lot of tall girls [in Hawaii]. You're gonna see a lot of undersized girls, but that's something we take pride in. We can still play an outside, a middle position, or a defensive setting position," Uluave continued.
She's now playing alongside 6-5 Brielle Kemavor and 6-3 Claire Little and is "definitely grateful for them and trusts them with her life." The trust is mutual.
"It's awesome because you can look back and know that Lulu can get that [ball]," Little said.
"Whenever I play with her, I know that she has my back picking up everything in the back row," Kemavor said.
Uluave was thrown right into action and is the first freshman at BYU to start at the Libero position since Madi Allen did it back in 2020.
"She's taken on a heavy load of serving, passing, defending, and being the captain of the back row [along with some other players]," Olmstead said.
On the back row, she is always communicating with the front row about what she's seeing and how the team can make in-game adjustments according to Kemavor.
"Her being able to step up to the challenge of playing at this level and being calm and composed [while doing so] has been really good for our team." Olmstead continued.
Teammates have also noticed this.
"Something I really respect about Lulu is how confident she is in herself. She's not afraid of a challenge and she's also not afraid to voice her opinion," Little said.
Uluave's mom also played college volleyball, but actually forbid her daughters from playing volleyball growing up.
"She knew that we'd fall in love with it so we tried other sports first...I grew up playing football and basketball before volleyball. I thought basketball was my first love," Uluave said.
When Uluave's mom finally allowed her girls to play volleyball, it wasn't long before Uluave realized how much she loved how fearless you can be on the court.
Putting her body on the line, chasing after balls, and the sweet reward that often follows is something that Uluave couldn't resist.
Exhibit A is below:
LULU IS UNREAL🤯
— BYU Women’s Volleyball (@BYUwvolleyball) October 20, 2024
📺https://t.co/hyUxmBjna8 pic.twitter.com/f9VIA0hPIL
"You never know where she's coming from or what ball she's diving for. She's all over the court, " Little said.
Little also described Uluave on the court as focused, fiery, and aggressive whereas coach Olmstead called her a "bulldog".
The BYU women's volleyball team had a great season this year finishing sixth in the 15-team Big 12 Conference.
They also made it to the NCAA tournament for the 13th year in a row, but fell short in the first round against Loyola University Chicago.
An amazing 2024 season comes to an end in Indiana💙 pic.twitter.com/Re86Nxz7cd
— BYU Women’s Volleyball (@BYUwvolleyball) December 5, 2024
Uluave led the team in total digs by a wide margin with 353 total digs in the regular season.
"She's so freaking humble about it. She'll go get a ball and then give all the glory to whoever hit it, when in reality we should all be celebrating the fact that she went and got it," Little said.
Uluave clearly has the support of her coach and teammates, and the future looks bright for this young freshman who "isn't afraid to put the work in" according to Little.
"Her determination and work ethic are inspiring. She never settles. She's always pushing herself to get better," Kemavor said.
Uluave knows this is just the beginning.
"There's always room for improvement. There's always a new challenge ahead. My goal is to never get comfortable," Uluave said regarding her future here at BYU.
"She's gonna be a stud. She's gonna be a fan favorite. People are gonna fall in love with her love for the game and her love for BYU. We're grateful she's here," Olmstead said.
Lulu Uluave is going to make a name for herself and her 'ohana and new community in Provo will cheer her on every step of the way.