Washington State University Athletics
Melina Christodoulou, a Leader On and Off the Court
February 18, 2026 | Volleyball
December of last year, Washington State graduate student Melina Christodoulou was back home in Greece for winter break. During that time, Christodoulou thought she had just wrapped up her last year of collegiate volleyball with the University of Akron. She already had her senior night, and, in her mind, the next step was to decide whether to peruse a master's degree in the United States next year or make the jump to play professionally.
That was until she found out that a change in the NCAA's policies gave her a final year of eligibility.
Christodoulou said that she was in shock when she found out that she had a fifth year of eligibility. The decision was a no brainer - she could pursue a master's degree in sports management while playing the sport she loves. Christodoulou entered her name into the transfer portal and began the search for her fourth and final school.
With her family not being able to come to the States with her because of visa issues, the search was not easy.
"I was traveling to different countries visiting, so I was very overwhelmed with so many different choices, but I was blessed to be in that position," Christodoulou said. "I think when I visited here, I literally knew this was the place I wanted to come just because of the people."
With WSU being a perfect fit, Christodoulou wasted no time getting on the Palouse. She arrived in the summer in order to connect with her new team. In her only season at WSU, Christodoulou appeared in 25 matches and posted 243 kills, earning her All-WCC Honorable Mention. Almost as important as her role on the court, Christodoulou has been an impact off the court as well.
At the end of the season, Christodoulou earned the Cougar Athletics Leadership award at the senior banquet. This role of a leader is something that the coaches took note of when she initially arrived in the summer.
"Once she got on campus, just how great she could fit into the group community and be a really good role model and the fact she wanted to get involved in leadership things too," Washington State assistant coach Kristin Watson reflected on what stood out about Christodoulou.
Before her time at WSU, when Christodoulou first arrived in the United States her freshman year, she could not speak fluent English yet. She said that she could understand what people were saying but could not always respond or even be her extroverted self. Throughout her two years at JUCO, she took English classes and by the time her junior year rolled around, Christodoulou felt she could be a voice for her team.
Christodoulou took on this role in her junior year. At Akron, each team could have two student athletes as part of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, but her junior year, nobody on the volleyball team was a part of the committee, so the spring after that season, Christodoulou joined. In this position, Christodoulou said that along with coordinating events with the athletic department, SAAC acts as a voice for student athletes.
"I wanted to be able to communicate the issues that we had as a program to the athletic department, and in order to do that you have to be a part of SAAC," said Christodoulou. "I was able to have a say when a problem came up like, 'Hey volleyball needs this' so I was able to vocalize our needs because you know every program has some stuff they need."
Along with being a leader among her peers, the opportunity with SAAC has allowed Christodoulou to be a part of the community among student athletes.
"It's been great, like meeting people from other sports and having the time to do something actually meaningful for other people and be there for them," Christodoulou said.
During the season Christodoulou represented the volleyball team this past season as a apart of SAAC. But after the season, continued being in a leadership role, accepting a graduate assistant role. Watson said that a possible GA role was a part of their initial pitch to Christodoulou, but now that the season is over, she is around helping the team.
After she gets her master's degree, Christodoulou said she hopes to get into community relations to be a mediator between sports organizations and community to try and build more resources for children's sports.
