Hey guys! It’s 3 seasons overdue but I finally got around to writing a decent blog for Luke and yourselves. It’s been an unbelievable journey so far that I hope I’m able to articulate well despite it covering so much time.
College volleyball was not something I had really considered as a possibility for myself. Volleyball was something that I enjoyed but never intended it to become a full-time aspect to life. It wasn’t until around year 11 that I decided that I wanted to study abroad and realizing that volleyball would be a pathway to that. Although I played state league for some time, I didn’t trial for a state team until under 19s or GMVA till quite late. Therefore, the option of a junior college – a 2-year program – looked so appealing. It gave me a chance to decide whether this was something I wanted to do and the option to leave after only 2 years if it wasn’t working.
In August of 2014 I began the college volleyball journey at Parkland College in small town Champaign, Illinois. Parkland was an easy choice, my correspondence with the coach had been positive and the location of the school being in the same town as a major Division 1 school meant that I would still get a big school experience whilst studying at a smaller one. Going into it I believed that the academics and the social side to the experience would be the hardest part to transition too, however I had completely disregarded that volleyball would take its own toll. From day 1 I was aware that I had more work to do than anybody else and the season ahead was not of playing but of learning and riding the bench. The previous year Parkland had lost the National Championship in 5 sets, there was a clear intention early that that wouldn’t be the case again. We completed the season 54 – 2 leading into the national championship against the 12th seed. We ended up losing the championship after being 2 sets up. As disappointing as it was, it only became a bitter sweet moment later down the road.
Junior colleges are renowned for being smaller and less intense programs than what you would expect out of a division 1 program. With many schools, I am sure this is the case and 70% of the teams I played in a season were mediocre, many teams having 1 star player with lots of okay players around them. Parkland was one of a kind. Preseason consisted of 4 weeks of a morning position session, followed by weights, team activities and then finally a whole team practice. Each day was at least 9 – 10 hours of volleyball. When school started, it didn’t alter overly, classes in the morning, study hall beginning at 3, then weights and finally practice. I never once felt that my program was any less of a program simply because it was a junior college, and it completely changed the physical way I play volleyball. Along with major volleyball changes, freshman year produced so many fun and exciting opportunities like coaching at a volleyball club that was for elementary and middle school kids, something Australia hasn’t been able to get going yet. I was coaching girls the age of 8 that had almost been playing longer than myself!
After spring ball/off-season which was basically the same schedule as in season with 1-2 less practices a week, I returned home before being required back in August.
Returning as a sophomore at a 2-year program only gives you a short amount of time to really change and step up as the leaders. With the 2 years of previous national runner up ribbons it was always going to be a year filled with pressure. We had 18 girls on the team which was the largest team I had ever been a part of. It was by the far the best season and the best team to have been a part of. We finished regular season 53 wins and 0 losses and reached the national championship as the number 1 seed. 3rd time really is a charm with a sweep in the championship and a perfect ending to my junior college career. Not long after we returned back to Champaign were we contacted by a local author that wanted to put together a novel about the 57-0 cobras and so 12 months later it was published on amazon!
In the days prior to travelling to the National tournament I had been in contact with several coaches and had opted to take University visits at 2 different schools. The University of Tennessee in Martin coach had expressed interest previously in the year but I wanted to hold my options open as long as I could. Being the height that I am, and playing a 5-1 in my only college experience I don’t believe I interested many coaches, so I didn’t have as many options as I would have liked. However, my visit to Tennessee led to a full scholarship at a division 1 program is in its rebuilding stages and looking for players that could come and play straight away. Mum agreed and accepted the scholarship before I even had a chance to think but it was an exciting decision which leads me to where I am now.
It was this last November that I completed my first season at UTM and it was something completely unique to what I experienced at Parkland. We completed the season 9-21 which was a slight adjustment to the winning streak I had previously. With a new coach and a tight budget, it was always going to be a difficult rebuilding time that I expect to still show in my upcoming and last year over in the United States. The quality of course has increased which has been the best part of stepping up to the next level, each game brought a challenge and we had much longer and intense matches. I also got to enjoy going back to running the court all the way around and getting back through the front row.
If going to college or playing overseas is something being considered but not sure upon, junior college can still provide a pretty incredible experience. I think I have been pretty lucky to attend both a small school and a big university that made the transition over to America much easier! If you guys want any other specific information about either of the 2 schools I have played at, please feel free reach out for a chat! I’ll be sure to write another blog during my last college season beginning in August!
College volleyball was not something I had really considered as a possibility for myself. Volleyball was something that I enjoyed but never intended it to become a full-time aspect to life. It wasn’t until around year 11 that I decided that I wanted to study abroad and realizing that volleyball would be a pathway to that. Although I played state league for some time, I didn’t trial for a state team until under 19s or GMVA till quite late. Therefore, the option of a junior college – a 2-year program – looked so appealing. It gave me a chance to decide whether this was something I wanted to do and the option to leave after only 2 years if it wasn’t working.
In August of 2014 I began the college volleyball journey at Parkland College in small town Champaign, Illinois. Parkland was an easy choice, my correspondence with the coach had been positive and the location of the school being in the same town as a major Division 1 school meant that I would still get a big school experience whilst studying at a smaller one. Going into it I believed that the academics and the social side to the experience would be the hardest part to transition too, however I had completely disregarded that volleyball would take its own toll. From day 1 I was aware that I had more work to do than anybody else and the season ahead was not of playing but of learning and riding the bench. The previous year Parkland had lost the National Championship in 5 sets, there was a clear intention early that that wouldn’t be the case again. We completed the season 54 – 2 leading into the national championship against the 12th seed. We ended up losing the championship after being 2 sets up. As disappointing as it was, it only became a bitter sweet moment later down the road.
Junior colleges are renowned for being smaller and less intense programs than what you would expect out of a division 1 program. With many schools, I am sure this is the case and 70% of the teams I played in a season were mediocre, many teams having 1 star player with lots of okay players around them. Parkland was one of a kind. Preseason consisted of 4 weeks of a morning position session, followed by weights, team activities and then finally a whole team practice. Each day was at least 9 – 10 hours of volleyball. When school started, it didn’t alter overly, classes in the morning, study hall beginning at 3, then weights and finally practice. I never once felt that my program was any less of a program simply because it was a junior college, and it completely changed the physical way I play volleyball. Along with major volleyball changes, freshman year produced so many fun and exciting opportunities like coaching at a volleyball club that was for elementary and middle school kids, something Australia hasn’t been able to get going yet. I was coaching girls the age of 8 that had almost been playing longer than myself!
After spring ball/off-season which was basically the same schedule as in season with 1-2 less practices a week, I returned home before being required back in August.
Returning as a sophomore at a 2-year program only gives you a short amount of time to really change and step up as the leaders. With the 2 years of previous national runner up ribbons it was always going to be a year filled with pressure. We had 18 girls on the team which was the largest team I had ever been a part of. It was by the far the best season and the best team to have been a part of. We finished regular season 53 wins and 0 losses and reached the national championship as the number 1 seed. 3rd time really is a charm with a sweep in the championship and a perfect ending to my junior college career. Not long after we returned back to Champaign were we contacted by a local author that wanted to put together a novel about the 57-0 cobras and so 12 months later it was published on amazon!
In the days prior to travelling to the National tournament I had been in contact with several coaches and had opted to take University visits at 2 different schools. The University of Tennessee in Martin coach had expressed interest previously in the year but I wanted to hold my options open as long as I could. Being the height that I am, and playing a 5-1 in my only college experience I don’t believe I interested many coaches, so I didn’t have as many options as I would have liked. However, my visit to Tennessee led to a full scholarship at a division 1 program is in its rebuilding stages and looking for players that could come and play straight away. Mum agreed and accepted the scholarship before I even had a chance to think but it was an exciting decision which leads me to where I am now.
It was this last November that I completed my first season at UTM and it was something completely unique to what I experienced at Parkland. We completed the season 9-21 which was a slight adjustment to the winning streak I had previously. With a new coach and a tight budget, it was always going to be a difficult rebuilding time that I expect to still show in my upcoming and last year over in the United States. The quality of course has increased which has been the best part of stepping up to the next level, each game brought a challenge and we had much longer and intense matches. I also got to enjoy going back to running the court all the way around and getting back through the front row.
If going to college or playing overseas is something being considered but not sure upon, junior college can still provide a pretty incredible experience. I think I have been pretty lucky to attend both a small school and a big university that made the transition over to America much easier! If you guys want any other specific information about either of the 2 schools I have played at, please feel free reach out for a chat! I’ll be sure to write another blog during my last college season beginning in August!
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