Martin Seiferth is a 6-foot-10-inch sophomore from Germany who uses his height to his advantage.

“He is an outstanding shot blocker and a solid rebounder,” said head coach Jim Hayford. Seiferth currently has 19 blocked shots this season, breaking the school record.

“It’s just great,” Seiferth said of breaking the record. “I’ve been working so hard, and it’s a nice reward.”

His performance this year has already crushed his freshman year debut while playing at the University of Oregon. Last year, Seiferth had to sit out due to NCAA rules regarding transfer players. At the end of his season at Oregon, however, Seiferth had a total of three blocked shots.

During the EWU game against Washington State University alone, Seiferth had two blocks within the first minute of play.

Seiferth also holds the distinction of being Eastern’s first transfer student from a Pac-12 school in close to 10 years. Seiferth said that the coach and the team stood out to him the most and they were the reason why he chose to come to Eastern.

Seiferth was also named Big Sky Player of the Week, an honor he did not think he would receive.

“I did not expect it,” he said “I was surprised.”

Although Seiferth has already broken the school record, he plans to continue striving for success throughout the rest of the season.

“[My goal is] to keep playing hard and get a good overall point and rebound average, and to improve every game,” he said.

Beyond these personal goals, Seiferth also has goals he hopes to see his team achieve as well. “The big goal is the Big Sky Championship and [to] get a lot of wins,” Seiferth said.

In order to reach both his personal and team goals, Seifterth plans on taking the advice coach Hayford has given to him. “As a post player coach tells me all the time to play tough,” Seiferth said. “The main goal is to get a lot of rebounds and be a solid defender.”

Hayford has high hopes that Seiferth will live up to this high potential. “As Martin gains game experience, he will develop over the course of his career and be an outstanding post player in the Big Sky Conference,” Hayford said.

Seiferth will attempt to add to his record-breaking statistic on Dec. 6 against Idaho in Reese Court. The Eagles will be returning from a Thanksgiving break road trip to Santa Clara, California where they won one out of their three games.