BIRTH: July 21, 1976

HOMETOWN: Fort Meyers Beach, Fla

RESIDES: Fort Meyers Beach, Fla.

HEIGHT: 6-1

COLLEGE: Central Florida

THE SKINNY: Tyra Turner is entering her fifth season on the beach in 2007. She had a pair of fifths in just her second season on the beach (2004), earning her a full-time spot in the main draw. In 2005, she was part of the fourth-ranked team (with Makare Wilson) on the AVP Tour with two semifinal appearances and eight fifth-place finishes. In 2006, she also played on the FIVB Tour, playing in beach volleyball competitions in 18 out of 19 consecutive weeks. On the AVP Tour in 2006 she ranked ninth in blocks (.79 per game).

Turner was all-conference all four years at the University of Central Florida (first-team in 1995-97). She was AVCA all-District in 1996 and 1997 and in 1997 she was the conference Player of the Year and named to the all-Academic team. Turner was the 1998 UCF Scholar Athlete of the Year as well as the Female Athlete of the Year. She holds the school record for blocks and is second in career kills. Her 151 consecutive matches played ranks fifth in NCAA history. In 2004, she was inducted into the UCF Athletic Hall of Fame. She played on the U.S. National Team before brief stints with the USPV and playing in Greece in 2003.

Formerly Tyra Harper, she married fellow AVP player Chad Turner in January 2005. They live in Southern California during the season, then return to Florida during the off-season. An only child (“and I love it”), she has a cat, Roxy. Upon graduation in 1998, Turner received a Bachelor’s in Speech Language Pathology Communicative Disorders. She loves theater, especially Phantom of the Opera.

FAVORITES:

MOVIE - Pete’s Dragon

BANDS - Sade, India Arie, Sixpence None The Richer

TV SHOW - The Biggest Loser

MEAL - My mom’s apple pie