Blog #6 - 2/8/10
Spring is upon us! For volleyball, that means the beginning of off-season workouts. We began that phase last week with weight training, conditioning sessions, and individual practice sessions. Hopefully we are all over the “first week” soreness. The pre-spring testing went well, and the girls are definitely working hard. For the coaching staff, we are busy in the gym with the girls and on the road recruiting. The current players can’t wait to meet their future teammates.
Spring is also the time for the volleyball team to contribute to the community by getting involved in some projects. We have already participated in the MLK Day of Service. We were assigned to paint all 29 fire hydrants on campus black & gold. It was a cold morning, but the girls all had smiles on their faces…especially after donuts were delivered! Other projects are still in the works.
Stay tuned to hear more about what the team is doing. We will also be posting our summer camp information soon, so check out the camp section on the main athletic webpage. Thanks again for all the support you show Aggie Volleyball!!
Blog #5 - 11/12/09
What a year this has been. We started the year on such an incredible high....10-2 in pre-season and poised to do great things in conference. We had some minor setbacks with some injuries (though this is no excuse) that sent us into a slight tailspin that has taken some time to recover. The whole point of pre-season is to find that right combination of girls and to get the team playing as a whole.
When we had to switch positions around it wiped out all the hard work that we accomplished during pre-season and started us back over at square one. For some teams this would have been enough to throw in the towel and just try to get through the season. But not for our team....they have worked harWell, our 2009 volleyball season has officially come to an end. It is a bittersweet ending for the girls and coaches....although we finished with 17 total wins, we didn't qualify for the conference tournament. Making the conference tournament was a main goal for the team, and right now it definitely hurts that we didn't make it. What I hope though it that after some time the girls will look back on the season and not think about the losses, but focus on the wins and the memories created from the season. I am sure each girl would come up with a different set of memories from the season, but here a few that I will remember:
- Beating Arkansas Tech (which ultimately secured our 1st place victory in their home tournament) in 5 during their featured match of the tournament
- Coming from behind and beating Missouri S&T in 5 at the Nebraska-Omaha tournament after an ankle injury took out one of our players and girls had to play very random positions....the focus and determination the girls showed was incredible
- Hearing a girl on the team ask if we could turn the lamps on in the bus (she meant the overhead reading lights)....it has been a running joke all year long
- Watching the girls freak out and laugh feeding the giraffes at the Abilene Zoo on a road trip
- Beating Texas Woman's at home in front of a great crowd
- Beating Texas A&M Commerce on senior day with all of our families, friends, the military, and the band cheering us on
- Seeing how excited the girls on the team are about a fellow teammate getting engaged
- Watching all the pre-match handshakes and rituals the girls have on the court
- Having 3 girls (Lindsay Pazuik, Laure Ellerbrock, and Nikita Abbott) make 2nd team all-conference and Amber Schroer make the Commissioner's Honor Roll
Now the focus for the program will be to recruit players to replace the seniors that we will all miss and find new girls to create memories with. Cameron Volleyball thanks the 5 seniors from this year for their hard work and dedication to the program. We wish you all the best in your future!!d, tried new positions, and kept pushing through...experiencing great wins and tough losses.
Our previous conference matches were must-win, pressure situation matches and the girls came through with flying colors. As a coaching staff you couldn't ask for more. We have 2 more left and the girls know what we need to do...we have to step in the gym and beat UCO and SWOSU. I know the girls are more than capable of accomplishing this...and I know they want our season to continue on to the conference tournament.
This is a tough little team, and I know they will fight hard on Thursday and Saturday. We appreciate all the home support that we got this year from the students, families, community members, and coaching staff. It is sad to know that we won't play anymore home matches this fall, but that gives us something to look forward to next year.
Wish us luck as we go beat UCO & SWOSU!!!
Blog #4 - 11/3/09
What a year this has been. We started the year on such an incredible high....10-2 in pre-season and poised to do great things in conference. We had some minor setbacks with some injuries (though this is no excuse) that sent us into a slight tailspin that has taken some time to recover. The whole point of pre-season is to find that right combination of girls and to get the team playing as a whole.
When we had to switch positions around it wiped out all the hard work that we accomplished during pre-season and started us back over at square one. For some teams this would have been enough to throw in the towel and just try to get through the season. But not for our team....they have worked hard, tried new positions, and kept pushing through...experiencing great wins and tough losses.
Our previous conference matches were must-win, pressure situation matches and the girls came through with flying colors. As a coaching staff you couldn't ask for more. We have 2 more left and the girls know what we need to do...we have to step in the gym and beat UCO and SWOSU. I know the girls are more than capable of accomplishing this...and I know they want our season to continue on to the conference tournament.
This is a tough little team, and I know they will fight hard on Thursday and Saturday. We appreciate all the home support that we got this year from the students, families, community members, and coaching staff. It is sad to know that we won't play anymore home matches this fall, but that gives us something to look forward to next year.
Wish us luck as we go beat UCO & SWOSU!!!
Blog #3 - 10/7/09
Hey Everyone!
I can't believe I have let so much time slip away since my last blog. We are beginning our huge stretch of conference play this Thursday and Saturday with away matches at Texas A&M Kingsville & Tarleton State University. Definitely one of our longest road trips...but it gives the girls some good quality time on the bus to bond as a team.
We are currently 1-2 in conference, so these 2 matches are very important for our team to help get us to the conference tournament. Just like every other team (I am sure) we have had some sicknesses and minor pulls and tweaks to our bodies, but the girls are remaining focused on what needs to be done and I am proud of the work they are accomplishing in practices. I know our seniors want to finish out the year just as strong as they started it.
Thanks to everyone who has come to Aggie Gym for our home matches. The crowds have been huge and so supportive with their cheering. We greatly appreciate it.
See you next Thursday!!!
Blog #2 - 9/14/09
Pre-season tournaments are finished....and we are 10-2. The team is so excited and I think we are playing exactly how we need to be right now headed into conference play. We have our first conference match down at Midwestern in Wichita Falls....and we are so happy that Student Activities has organized a "Rolling with the Aggies" bus trip down for any students that want to come and cheer us on.
The team is also anxious to play at home on Saturday, September 19th for the first time this season. We face Oklahoma City University at 10 AM and then University of Arkansas-Fort Smith at 2:30 PM. This weekend is also our Alumni Weekend and any former volleyball players are invited to come back home, cheer us on, and then play a match of their own after our 2:30 PM victory!
See you Saturday in Aggie Gym!!!
Blog #1
As you can imagine, life is a little crazy right now with early season tournaments in full swing. Getting things wrapped up from last weekend and preparing for this weekend definitely takes up time and energy....but those things are easy to give up when you have your sights set on being the best team you can be and accomplishing great things.
The team took a huge step forward towards achieving their pre-season goals when they went 4-0 at the Arkansas Tech tournament. We beat Southwest Baptist 3-0, Arkansas Tech 3-2, University of Alabama-Huntsville 3-1, and Texas A&M International 3-0....a lot of hard fought sets where the girls handled some pressure situations and showed they were not going to give up without a fight.
Coach Darling and I are very proud of the great start to the season and look forward to seeing the girls fight it out again in Abilene this weekend. Congrats go out to Malyssa Acton and Lindsay Paziuk for making the all-tournament team....and to Laura Ellerbrock for being named the MVP of the tournament!
|
