Cynthia Barboza
Wilson Classical High School
Impact Statement
“Before I even started playing volleyball, I knew that the Olympics were a dream of mine,” -Cynthia Barboza
Biography
The first female athlete – and only the fourth in any sport – to be voted the Gatorade National Player of the Year twice, the 6-foot-1 outside hitter/middle blocker averaged 18.3 kills, 1.57 blocks and 2 aces per match, leading Wilson Classical High to the Southern Section Division I-AA semifinals. She posted a kill percentage of .840 in the semifinal loss to eventual champion Mira Costa High.
An alternate on the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team, Barboza was Volleyball magazine’s High School Player of the Year, Division I-AA co-MVP and a four-time California Interscholastic Federation First Team All-State selection. Also a straight-A student, she will attend Stanford University.
While at Stanford, Barboza tore her ACL her freshman year but fully rebounded. She went on to be a 2x AVCA First-Team All-American. She was also named twice to the Final Four Dream Team. She continued her success and played in Italy, Japan and Russia after college.
Barboza was a 2008 Olympic team member. Barboza led the US team to the Bronze medal at the 2011 Pan Am Games.
In 2014 Barboza announced her retirement from volleyball.
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