Egle Giedraitis
Egle Giedraitis `76 Volleyball
A pioneer who might not have realized it at the time, Egle Giedraitis was one of the original four members of the CSU volleyball squad.
She began playing volleyball as a 12-year-old with the Lithuanian Athletic Club. Ciedraitis credits Aldirdas Bielskus, her coach then, and Ryias Babickas, a coach in later year, for instilling within her a passion for the game which has yet to subside.
Because girl's sports had not yet made an appearance in grade school and high school interscholastic programs, competition was limited to American Athletics Union (AAU)-run leagues. It was in the AAU leagues throughout her junior high and high school years that Giedraitis and her Lithuanian teammates won many age group division championships.
After completing her freshman year at CSU, the 5-10 Geidaitis was asked to play on a newly-formed CSU team in 1972. Marsha Foth Nagy was asked to coach, and the rest is history. The team made others aware of their presence form the beginning, compiling an impressive 11-2 record. In the first appearance in the state tournament, Cleveland State capped off the year by stunning Ohio State.
Because of the historic passing or the Title IX Educational Amendment in 1972, women's sports took on an equal footing with the men's programs, and for the first time in history, women were awarded athletic scholarships. Giedraitis, along with some other teammates were the first recipients of these scholarships at CSU.
The Vikings continued to dominate on the volleyball court for the next three years. With Giedraitis as team captain in 1973, CSU compiled and once again reached the semifinals in the State Tournament.
However, it was the 1974 season that placed the CSU volleyball team in the record books. After finishing the regular season with a 14-1 record, the squad went 4-1 at the state tournament to finish third. The Vikes went on to sweep the MAIAW Regional Tournament with a perfect 6-0 record.
With the regional victory, the Vikings qualified to represent the Midwest at the AIAW National Tournament in Portland, Oregon, playing against top-ranked teams from California, Hawaii, and Texas, The Vikings finished among the top 24 teams in the country and a final slate of 25-6.
Because Giedraitis had one ore year of eligibility to play varsity volleyball, she opted to postpone her graduation with hopes to return to the national tournament and to place higher than the previous year. As fate would have it, her best friend, Hall of Famer, and 1974 CSU Female Athlete of the Year, Rita Cyvas, saw her volleyball career end with a knee injury. However, the team still had an impressive 22-9 record overall, finishing third in the State Tournament. However, the Vikings spilt their matches at the MAIAW regional tournament and did not qualify for the national championship.
During her career, Giedraitis was part of a program that went 70-20. She earned four letters and was honored as team captain three times.
Giedraitis closed out her collegiate career by earning the Athletic Director's Award, which is bestowed upon graduating student-athlete with the highest grade point average. Giedaitis, who earned a bachelor of science in physical education, finished with a 3.82 GPA.
Giedraitis married Marius Laniauskas, a dentist and associate professor at CWU Dental School in 1977 and together will be celebrating their 25th anniversary this year. Laniauskas chose to stay at home to raise their four children: Matas, an independent web designer, Simas, a pre-med student at John Carroll University, Lukas, a senior in high school, and Vaiva, a sophomore at Lake Catholic High School.
Embracing her passion for the sport, Laniauskas coached her daughter's team at St. Felicitas. She was also a junior varsity coach at Lake Catholic High School
