Luvina Oguntimehin stands for everything that is well and good with UTEP volleyball.
The 6-foot-2, powerfully built middle blocker came to El Paso in 2024, straight out of high school (Conroe Oak Ridge near Houston, Texas) like so many of her teammates, as a developmental player looking at a year or two to work her way into regular rotation.
Luvina Oguntimehin stays loyal to UTEP
Oguntimehin stayed true to UTEP, never considering transferring to somewhere she could skip straight to being a star, and then began climbing the ladder. She worked her way up from a bit part as a freshman to a rotation player and spot starter as a sophomore, and now to one of the major forces on a 7-2 Miner team hoping to make the NCAA tournament for a third straight season.
Across the collegiate landscape,
many programs are in "get rich quick" mode, juggling the inflow and outflow of transfers on a forever liquid roster. UTEP's formula is different, one based on loyalty and player development, and while Oguntimehin has become one of the Miners' very best players, she represents her five-player junior class.
Four of those juniors arrived here in 2024 (Oguntimehin, Lauren Perry, Landry Braziel and Hannah Crowe) and all have worked their way into becoming major cogs in UTEP's machine.
In terms of roster construction, this looks like something from 15 years ago, in all the best ways. This is how something special is built.
'Culture' keeps Oguntimehin at UTEP
"The group last year left behind so many good things for us to grow off of, like the culture, a good program, good habits for this new team and it's helped us all mesh together and play together as a team," Oguntimehin said of the legacy she's now driving.
"I've definitely changed from being a last option to being one of the top options on the team. I've adapted to it with the help of my pins (outside hitters) and my setters who trust me. We built that trust in the offseason."
For coach Ben Wallis, molding young players into budding stars is immensely satisfying and these juniors are what that is all about.
Role evolves for Luvina Oguntimehin
"The veterans that were sophomores transitioning into being juniors now, it's been a lot and a lot of fun to see their roles change, but also to see who is really taking a step forward to being a dominant player, a go-to player on this team," Wallis said. "Some of them are starting to show some real progress there."
That's certainly Oguntimehin. She is the team leader in points, kills and kills per set, second in blocks and hitting percentage among players with double-digit kills. She does that with a physical presence on the front line.
"Dominant," Wallis said. "She’s a dominant, physical human being. I mean, just looking at her, she's beautiful, but she's also a strong woman, and we love that about her.
"When you watch her in the weight room, holy smoke, she pushes the weights around in there like they're fake. But she's also just a silly, funny kid to be around. She's one of the dorkiest ones on our team, and people laugh at her funny, silly personality a lot, and that's what she's brought to this team.
"She will get better and be the most dominant physical player in our conference soon."
The "silly personality" is a perfect fit for a team that, under Wallis, has historically been known for its looseness and ability to have fun. That's part of the reason players aren't anxious to bolt to the transfer portal. Oguntimehin said, though, it goes deeper than that.
"One thing UTEP does that other teams don't, we do this thing called PT where we focus completely on mental health," she said. "They prioritize our bodies so much more. If we don't need to practice, we need a day to take care of our bodies, we do that. It's the same thing with our mental health. They prioritize school also. The family culture we have kept me here."
Oguntimehin first saw that in high school when she was looking for a four-year home.
"On my visit, it was definitely the people," she said. "As soon as I stepped on campus, the coaches acted like family, there was complete transparency with the players and I clicked really well with the team."
What's changed this year is Oguntimehin's role. On a team with five seniors last year, she became a key piece of the Conference USA regular-season championship team, while learning from those seniors what leadership looked like.
Oguntimehin makes the leap
This year that's her.
"Luvina has made significant progress in her role for our team," Wallis said. "Even in the spring, we could start to see a big change for her. She knew that we were graduating five starters, people who made a big impact on this team, and all spring we talked about what the next step for UTEP volleyball is in terms of our veterans. She's taken a big leap in terms of the role she's playing, but also in her voice."
Oguntimehin describe her leadership like this: "When some people aren't playing as well, I have to take on a bigger load, figure out ways to help them produce for our team in different ways."
One of her junior classmates/teammates, Lauren Perry, said Oguntimehin also leads by example.
"She’s one of the biggest competitors on our team," Perry said. "I'm so glad that she's in our team and not the other team, I say that every day at practice."
All of that is heading toward a common goal. As much history as Oguntimehin and her teammates made in 2024 and '25, there are still breakthroughs to be made in UTEP's first year in the Mountain West.
"We're looking to win a (Mountain West) regular season and tournament championship, which is something this program has not done yet," Oguntimehin said of winning a postseason tournament. "I'm looking forward to making the tournament, which is the first step, then winning two games in a row and getting that tournament championship."
If UTEP does that, a big reason will be because Oguntimehin leads them there.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Lavina Oguntimehin rewards UTEP volleyball's faith-and-development model
