I played four years of volleyball in high school; three of those were spent on varsity. I loved the sport and my teammates, but I always knew that I wouldn't continue the sport in college. I can't help but feel a little nostalgic when I see something that reminds me of volleyball and the time I spent with my high school team. Each season I played gave me challenges that built me into the person I am today. I continue to bring the lessons I learned into any life situation. Life lessons, like teamwork, leadership, character, and personal growth, were all presented to me through volleyball. Here are the things I miss most about high school volleyball.
1. The preseason
Call me crazy, but those two-a-days brought the whole team together and gave us time to create the memories that I cherish to this day. Of course, lack of air conditioning was frustrating, but wall-sitting as a team and cheering each other on with chants and motivational songs provided ample quality team bonding moments. Lunch breaks always carried awesome conversations with girls I shared a court with. Also, team ice-cream runs after practice always served (no pun intended) as a nice treat.
2. The bus rides
Speaking of team bonding, there’s no better way to get to know your teammates than to travel to games, crammed in a school bus, singing along to top-40 hits, and gossiping about what happened at school that day and catching up with the lyrics of the latest Maroon Five song. And whether we won or lost, the rides back to the school always carried the support of fellow teammates.
3. The ribbons
A team member was assigned to bring ribbons for all the other girls to wear in their hair at every day (as shown in the picture above). This was one of my favorite team traditions because not only did we look awesome, but it gave a little bit of everyone’s personality to the team. Each game’s ribbon was unique to that particular girl, and sharing that with the team made it that much more special. At the end of the season, the ribbon collection tied around my volleyball bag represented the positives and negatives in each sparkling pattern and frayed end.
4. The knee pads
When you go in for a last-resort dive to the ball before it hits the ground, knee pads are the only form of protection keeping this spontaneous act from being completely crazy. You could easier lift yourself up after a dive and carry on to the next point. The minimum amount of pain would be a rug burn, if you landed the correct way. Now, I need to invest in some mental knee pads, because whenever I need to lift myself up, it takes a minute to recover.
5. The games
The energy of the team, the stakes of each point, and the excitement of the crowd: All of these aspects were so important to our volleyball games. Standing on the court with five other girls and preparing for the next volley, not knowing what the next play would bring, was so exciting! As a setter, being able to set the ball for a spike was pure joy for me. The passion for the game kept giving me a reason to go back to play another season of volleyball. Along with the most important and final reason I miss the sport.
6. The team
Circling up before each game to encourage each of my teammates to play the best she possibly could was definitely a highlight of playing volleyball. Every girl had her own personality, but when we put that uniform on, we were a team. The support I found within my high school team is something I have carried with me ever since. I continue to find ways to express the support they gave me with other groups I'm a part of today. Playing a team sport has taught me to be supportive of myself and others.
