She gets down into her position — her knees always bent, her hands always ready, always bouncing on the balls of her feet. Her eyes light up as the ball approaches. She doesn’t know when it is coming or where it will be coming from, but she knows that when it comes, it’s her job to be there.

She is junior Tina Orlandini, who led the volleyball team in digs last season. She amounted 701 digs last year, the third highest single-season total in program history. This year, Orlandini has been a key part in the Bombers’ late-season surge for the playoffs.

Orlandini has not only stepped up her game on the court, but she has become a motivational leader as well, sophomore Chelsea Hayes said.

“Tina has a unique energy that she brings to the court, which is awesome,” Hayes said. “I am so grateful that I usually get to play next to her. She lets you be on your own and just tells you, ‘You can do it. You’re great.’”

Orlandini said she feels good about taking on a more vocal role this season now that she has secured her place on the court.

“This year, since I have more confidence in the position and since I am a junior, I feel like I’m obligated to take on more of a leadership role,” she said.

Orlandini said she feels it is her job to get her teammates as fired up as she gets because it adds to Ithaca’s strong team atmosphere.

“I know some players like to be on their own and internalize what’s about to happen but I really like to be with the team,” she said.

Junior Taylor Horton, Orlandini’s teammate and roommate, has helped her develop as a player and the team’s motivator.

“It’s definitely one of the most important jobs, to have someone like Tina that really brings everybody else up,” Horton said. “It really gets the team going and gets us out of the slumps that we get into sometimes.”

Listed as a defensive specialist, Orlandini has the job of trying to return the spikes and serves of opposing players. It’s a job she said she takes seriously, but she said her performance can sometimes go overlooked because volleyball is an offensive game and she has always played for teams where strong defense was just assumed.

Orlandini said she is used to flying under the radar because she was not one of the best players on her high school team. But she said her team’s success is the most important thing.

“It really doesn’t bother me,” Orlandini said. “I’ve always been on a team that had a really solid defense — it comes with being on a team.”

Head Coach Janet Donovan said she never takes Orlandini’s skills for granted. Donovan, who said she has one of the best liberos in the region, knows how invaluable Orlandini’s play is to her squad. And while she said her team doesn’t rely on any one person, Orlandini would be extremely difficult to replace.

“Her passing, her serving, her defense has really helped us play at a much higher level this year,” Donovan said. “Instead of being a target, she forces a lot of teams to not want to serve at her.”

Donovan said Orlandini fits into the Bombers’ game plan well.

“She’s got to be the calming factor on the court because if she starts to lose it, our offense is gone,” Donovan said. “If she doesn’t pass the ball to our setter we have no attack, and if she doesn’t read the opposing team’s hitters and make those incredible digs, then we’re sunk.”