草莓社区

In an exciting end-of-season twist, EMU鈥檚 women鈥檚 volleyball team made it back into the ODAC Tournament after a ten-year hiatus. As they all deserve a little praise, the entire team is the Royals Athlete of the Week.

鈥淚t was like we made this small impact on the school and athletics,鈥� reflected senior and co-captain聽聽(Staunton, Va./Robert E. Lee), 鈥渁nd it was just an overall awesome feeling and thing to experience.鈥�

The team got into the eight-team tournament after coming out on top of a four-way tie. It was a nail-biter until the very end.

鈥淚 had sort of written off the chance of us getting in,鈥� said head coach Carrie Bert. 鈥淲e didn鈥檛 know for sure until the very last Friday of conference season.鈥�

Junior and co-captain聽聽(Manheim, Pa./Hempfield) highlighted all of the behind-the-scenes work that went into her team鈥檚 success this season.

鈥淥ur team put in a ton of work in the offseason to prepare for the season, and many of the girls on the team would go to extra skill sessions with our assistant coach that weren’t required or show up early to get more reps before practice,鈥� Yoder said.

鈥淲e had to figure out how to win,鈥� said Bert, 鈥渁fter years of EMU being in kind of the assumed bottom of the ODAC.鈥�

This year鈥檚 seniors played a big role in overcoming that mental block.

鈥淸They] have taught the rest of us that they have fight and they鈥檙e competitive enough, and some of the girls that I鈥檝e recruited since have bought into that,鈥� Bert explained. 鈥淎nd so this particular group collectively has a great desire to win and doesn鈥檛 think it鈥檚 worth playing if they鈥檙e not trying their hardest.鈥�

鈥淲ith every sport and season, it is always a crazy roller coaster ride,鈥� Johnson said. 鈥淭here were many different highs and lows for this season. Some highs were taking Roanoke and Virginia Wesleyan to five games. Even though we lost both, it still showed the potential of our team and how amazing we could be.鈥�

Bert said she is proud of how much the team’s athletes have grown over the course of this season and their years at 草莓社区.

鈥淭he end of the season proved that they found a spot where they had confidence in themselves,鈥� she said. 鈥淭rusting each other and having confidence in each other and the seniors and some of the juniors leading [was essential].鈥�

The Royals were knocked out in the first round of the ODAC Tournament, losing to top-seeded and eventual champion Randolph-Macon.

鈥淎nd yet, how exciting to have that opportunity,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd that鈥檚 what I told them [the team] at the end. I said, we need to think about this in terms of winning and learning, not winning and losing, because we鈥檝e been given the opportunity to be in this place … and we need to thank the seniors for building this program into something where this is the expectation now.鈥�

鈥淚 hope that we don’t lose our desire to improve,鈥� Yoder added. 鈥淭he seniors on our team this year have encouraged the rest of the team both vocally and by example to expect more from ourselves. I hope this attitude is continued by the juniors and underclassmen next year.鈥�

Johnson is excited for the team鈥檚 future as well.

鈥淚 have such high hopes for these remaining players and players coming in,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey have such an amazing foundation and team chemistry. I’m really excited to see what they can do next year. I think they can do amazing things with this program and help create a name for EMU women’s volleyball.鈥�

鈥淭hey鈥檙e smart, they鈥檙e athletic, they鈥檙e competitive,鈥� Bert said. 鈥淲e were often outsized [this year], and yet we didn鈥檛 always let that stop us.鈥�

Johnson is graduating this year, but she will take her experiences with her team with her when she goes.

鈥淚 don’t know where these four years have gone, but playing volleyball has been the highlight and light of those years,鈥� she said. 鈥淔our years ago, I would tell myself to enjoy and cherish every moment I had on the court and to remember the amazing relationships I’ve made in the volleyball world. I couldn’t imagine my life without volleyball, and it has helped shape me into the person I am today.鈥�

Bert is graduating five seniors, each a four-year member of the team.

鈥淵eah, this is a group I鈥檓 really going to miss,鈥� she said.

鈥淚’ve loved playing with this group of people,鈥� Johnson said. 鈥淚’m very excited to see where they take this program in the coming years.鈥�