Women’s volleyball returns to practice with lots of excitement after a long break. 

The team usually plays their season in the fall, but with COVID-19 they didn’t get the opportunity. If things go well, the team could possibly be playing some games in the springtime. These games will not count towards anything but will give the team a chance to display their hard work. 

In her first year at CWU as assistant coach, Lauren Herseth looks to continue the winning tradition she left here in 2014 when she played for CWU and helped take them to the NCAA national tournament.

“It’s been so good to be back as a group, and it’s also nice to start fine tuning things so we’re ready to go for the fall,” Herseth said.

Sophomore outside hitter Ashley Kaufman was very excited to start practice backup and reconnect with her teammates after the long break.

“I feel good being back, I felt like it was needed, I needed to get out of my apartment,” Kaufman said. 

Kaufman said one of her favorite things about playing on the team is making memories with her teammates. 

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the team not knowing if they will have a season, the team is able to focus on perfecting the basics. 

Senior outside hitter Makaly Swart looks forward to coming back from an injury and playing this spring.

“We have really been focusing on the fundamentals and techniques like passing angles and approaches,” Swart said. 

Swart said doing that has been super helpful because they have been able to nail the basics and it will help their team down the road. 

If they have a season, Herseth said she sees them firing from all cylinders since they have kids that can jump high and hit hard. Herseth sees them utilizing the whole team with a solid group of freshmen.

Kaufman said returning to the court has been good for growing relationships with her teammates since it is hard for them to do that off the court with COVID-19. 

“Everyone on the team is pretty hard working and we go all out for every game,” Kaufman said.