All Things (seasons) Come to an End!!

This weekend marked the end of my junior year volleyball season (i.e. final blog about volleyball for the year). Let me set the scene for you:

We won all three of our matches on Thursday, defeating Bryant, Kutztown University and University of Wisconsin – Riverfalls. On Friday, we were placed in power pool with Duke and Mankatu (wherever that is?!) to determine which two teams would advance to the gold bracket, and which team would move to the silver bracket.

After falling to Duke in straight sets during the beginning of the day, the team rebounded to defeat Mankatu in straight sets. With a three-way tie for first place, the two teams with the lowest amount of points scored on the day would square off in a one set dual to 25 points. The winner advances to gold, and the loser competes in the silver bracket.

In an absolute blood bath, we fell to Mankatu 25-27; not really the way we envisioned the tournament playing out.

Joining us in silver bracket play on Saturday was the tournaments third, sixth and ninth seed. Competition would still be fierce. Throughout a long day of tough competition, we played in the silver bracket championship against Missouri State. After dropping the first set pretty convincingly, we came from behind to claim the silver bracket championship.

Yesterday was probably the proudest day of the collegiate volleyball career. It would’ve been easy for us to call it a show after our dreams of a national championship came to an end. However, each member of the team fought hard and displayed a commendable amount of energy and passion toward the sport and the program.

As a prospective student who wanted to play volleyball, I was attracted ONU men’s volleyball program because of the commitment to excellence and pride that the coaches and players embodied. I experienced that tradition of excellence in the purest form yesterday, and that is something that I will never forget.

Being a college athlete can be extremely difficult at times. There is so much mental and physical commitment that is required. With demanding academic expectations and additional involvements, it’s easy to become exhausted and frustrated. However, it’s days like yesterday that reminds me why I chose to play volleyball in college and how important the sport has been in my life.

It was a great way to end the season, and I’m so proud of my teammates. With that said, I’m looking forward to having a bit of a break.