Lina Aluzri

The CMS-ence of Lina Aluzri

CLAREMONT, Calif. - As a defensive specialist on the CMS volleyball team, Lina Aluzri is used to needing to react quickly in the middle of a fast-paced environment. Those same traits came in handy this summer when she served as an investment banking analyst on the consumer team for Piper Jaffray. 

Aluzri was part of a national championship winning team with the Athenas in 2017, but really stepped up a year ago as a regular member of the rotation. After losing eight seniors off the title squad and having numerous injuries a year ago. CMS was able to stay among the nation's elite with a 27-4 record and a top-10 ranking all season, despite not having any seniors on the roster. 



This year's team returns all of its starters and key rotation players from last fall, and has its eyes set on making a run at its second national title in the last three years. Winning it again, especially as a senior, would mean a lot to Aluzri. 

"I did feel a little bit young," admitted Aluzri about her presence on the national title team. "Now that I have three years of experience under my belt and a year of playing time, getting to that point again would be awesome. But the team has talked about taking it game by game, play by play, practice by practice, just thinking about our opening tournament (Pacific Coast Classic, Friday and Saturday at Roberts Pavilion), and then focusing on the building blocks we need to get there." 

A SCIAC All-Academic team selection, Aluzri has also effectively used her economics major and computer science minor at Claremont McKenna to work on her building blocks for her career after graduation, including this summer's internship at Piper Jaffray. 

"Every day I did a bit of financial modeling, she said, "as well as building PowerPoint decks for pitchbooks and working on live deals. So it was a really fast-paced environment. Every day wasn't like the other; you just had to go in with zero expectations and work hard and grind it out. You have to keep a positive attitude, because that's the biggest thing that will get you through a job that's that stressful."

When not studying or playing volleyball, Aluzri has tutored fellow 5c students in Arabic and computer science, tutored local high school students in mathematics, and worked extensively with the Claremont McKenna admissions office as a tour guide and interviewer, a role that she has thoroughly enjoyed.  

"It's one of my favorite things to do on campus," she said. "I love interacting with people and selling the school. The place makes me so happy, so I want to show all these prospective families what it means to me to be here."

To view more about the CMS-ence of Lina Aluzri, click the play button above or visit our YouTube page