As a freshman, I was apprehensive not only about starting college, but also about playing volleyball. Playing in the Bethel League this summer really helped by enabling me to play with some of the other UMM volleyball players. Knowing some of my future teammates eased some of my anxiety. Once I met all the players, my worries disappeared. Everyone is very friendly and encouraging, and I instantly felt like part of the team.
Each week, two players from our team are deemed “inspirators of the week.” This means that these two people think of some surprise/treat for the team to inspire us to work hard, play together, etc. Mindy and I were inspirators this week. We gave everyone a volleyball ribbon with three links on one end and a nail on the other. The links represent team unity and how we are all connected through the volleyball team. The nail represents how we must all work together to build a strong team and be successful on the court.
We just won our first match! We played Macalester on Wednesday and beat them in three games. It was so much fun to see all our hard work pay off. We played together as a team, and everyone did a great job of communicating on the court. We also got really excited and yelled after every point we earned, which helped pump us up and get us ready for the next point. Our fans also did a great job of cheering us on and supporting us. Thank you so much for coming to the match, especially those that had a very long drive to get here!
Our team is now taking a long drive of its own. After practice today we loaded onto the bus and are now heading to Milwaukee for our first tournament. We will stop at Colleen Hermes’ parents' house for dinner, and then make our way to Eau Claire and stay in a hotel for the night. After breakfast in the morning we will continue on to our destination and arrive ready to play!
Based on our hard work and our ability to work well as a team, not to mention how great our first game went, I have no doubt that our team will do well. Go Cougars!
