She found herself never fitting in.

She attended four different high schools, moving every year.

Volleyball made it easier.

“Volleyball gave me something to automatically try and be a part of at each school,” varsity volleyball head coach Melissa Martin said. “Growing up in California and moving to Texas in the middle of my junior year was not easy. I immediately got in touch with the volleyball coach and started working out with them.”

Her experiences on the court have shaped the way she coaches.

“There was this one school I went to, and the coach sat us all down in a line and said, ‘This is where you are on the team, you’re first, you’re last,’” Melissa Martin said. “Well, I was last, because I didn’t go there and, you know, that crushes you as a kid. I would never do that because it was done to me.”

By her senior year of high school, Melissa Martin’s team advanced to the volleyball regional finals. While playing at a club volleyball tournament, she was seen by Lamar University’s volleyball coach, Katrinka Crawford, and offered a full scholarship to play at a Division 1 school.

“Playing at Lamar was a great experience,” Melissa Martin said. “When you are on a full scholarship, volleyball is basically your job.”

She played all four years of college and advanced to the Sweet 16 competition her last year.

“We played Arizona in the first round and unfortunately lost,” Melissa Martin said. “I feel I was at my peak my senior year and wished I had one more year to play.”

After playing in college, Melissa Martin started working at volleyball camps and decided to continue pursuing her passion for volleyball through coaching.

“Volleyball has been a huge part of my life and still is,” Melissa Martin said. “I played at Lamar University in Beaumont and worked with camps, and coached freshman and JV at Nederland High school for 11 years, then I went to Sabine Pass where I was the head coach for five years before coming to Bellaire.”

After 29 years of coaching, Melissa Martin hasn’t lost her passion for what she does.

“Knowing that the kids come in and they’re ready to work hard every day, it makes you excited because it’s not always that way,” Melissa Martin said. “There’s some that will make any excuse, not to practice, not to participate, especially in the off-season. But off-season is a time to work on strength and agility and speed training and different things, and so as long as the kids are wanting to come in, that makes me want to keep coaching.”

Melissa Martin runs the volleyball program alongside her husband, Michael Martin, who coaches JV.

The two met playing in different volleyball tournaments, and later played small weekly games at Nederland High School where Michael Martin’s sister coached varsity.

“I was playing on girls’ teams, and he was on guys’ teams, but we somehow always ended up watching each other,” Melissa Martin said. “Soon we ended up being teammates in a coed doubles sand tournament and here we are about to celebrate our 30-year anniversary. Volleyball has definitely been a huge part of our life.”

Michael Martin thinks the volleyball program benefits because the players learn from them both.

“Even though our coaching styles may be different at times, we are trying for the same goal of success,” Michael Martin said. “There are a lot of working parts in the game of volleyball, and we complement each other well. Melissa is one of the best coaches I’ve known. She is fair but firm, her players know what to expect and what it takes to be successful, [and also] when to have fun and when to get down to business.”

Sophomore and varsity player Olivia Wang feels Melissa Martin has helped her grow as both a player and student.

“Coach [Melissa] Martin placed a lot of self-confidence in me by giving me the chance to play on varsity as a freshman and in turn, I’ve become a strong player and person,” Wang said. “Off the court, she has influenced me to keep up my grades and prove my place on the team.”

Melissa Martin’s coaching philosophy extends to all players, not just her own.

“Before I came here, I was very serious about playing, and now I’m having more fun on the court while playing,” sophomore and JV libero Camila Amaya said. “She pushes us to do our best, and she cares about us a lot.”

Melissa Martin offers two summer camps, a Little’s Camp which is for grades 4-8, and a high school camp for incoming ninth graders through seniors. At the Little’s Camp, several current players volunteer and help with the camp, where girls are introduced to volleyball at a young age and work on basic skills that include passing, setting, serving and hitting. The high school camp is an extra four days before tryouts for the girls to prepare for the upcoming season, where they go through several drills, a lot of conditioning and team play.

“There were camps with both head coaches before me,” Melissa Martin said. “I did continue to offer camps as I believe [they are] important parts of our Bellaire volleyball success. I have also had several players who now have kids, and they bring them to my volleyball camp. These are players that I coached 29 years ago and for them to travel from the Beaumont area to Houston to attend my camp means the world to me. I can only hope that I continue to have a positive impact on my players.”