Back in high school, I played a match we thought would end quickly. We were excited and sure it’d be over fast. But it turned into a five-set fight that lasted more than two hours. Long rallies, timeouts, and player switches made it feel like the game would never end. I remember checking the clock, … Read more
I still remember it like it just happened. I was standing behind the service line. My heart was pounding. Everyone on my team was watching. No one said a word. I took a deep breath, tossed the ball into the air, and hit it as best as I could. The ball flew over the net … Read more
I still remember the day I first played a game of volleyball. I was excited but nervous. The moment the ball came flying toward me, I flustered. I tried to hit it with my hands like I was playing tennis, and the ball bounced off my arms and flew in the wrong direction. Everyone smiled, … Read more
I’ll never forget my first big volleyball tournament. I was just a freshman, nervous but excited to finally play against other schools. Our team wasn’t bad, but we were completely unprepared for what happened when we faced Lincoln High. There was this one player on their team – number 13. Every time their setter put … Read more
I still remember my first competitive volleyball match. I was playing as an outside hitter, and our team was struggling with receiving powerful serves. That’s when our coach suddenly yelled, “Netta! You’re going in as DS for Johnson!” I stopped. DS? I had an idea of what hitters and setters did, but not this. While … Read more
There was one Thursday afternoon in high school when our coach told us we’d be scrimmaging against the varsity team. My stomach dropped. I was still trying to master my serves and positioning. Scrimmage? That sounded like a full match. And it kind of was. I thought we were just going to do some drills, … Read more
One afternoon, I stepped onto a sand court for the first time. It felt strange. I had been used to the smooth gym floors of indoor volleyball. Now I was barefoot, standing on soft sand, and trying to adjust to the breeze that wouldn’t stop moving the ball. For years, I played indoor volleyball. I … Read more
I still remember the first time I stepped onto a volleyball court. The lights were bright, the court lines looked sharp, and the net seemed much taller than I expected. I stood there, unsure of what to do, until my coach pointed and said, “You’re in position 6!” I had no clue what that meant. … Read more
It wasn’t during a championship game or a pressure-packed tournament that I truly understood the power of the 5-1 volleyball rotation. It happened one evening during a routine practice. We were trying out different rotations, and nothing seemed to click. Players were confused. The rhythm was off. One of my assistant coaches turned to me … Read more
I still remember the first time I tried running the 6-2 volleyball rotation in a competitive match. I was confident at first, but halfway through the second set, I found myself constantly shouting out positions to confused teammates. We kept getting called for overlap violations and had no rhythm. That game was a turning point. … Read more