While most students were enjoying a three-day weekend, six of
the UCLA women’s volleyball players were hard at work, trying
to make a dream become reality.
Accompanied by UCLA coach Andy Banachowski, Katie Carter,
Rachell Johnson, Nana Meriwether, Kaitlin Sather, Blair Socci and
Nellie Spicer traveled to Colorado Springs, Colo., to try out for
the 2006 USA Women’s National Team.
“I certainly encourage our players to be involved in
tryouts like this because they have to go out and put themselves on
the line,” Banachowski said.
Sixty-eight volleyball players from all over the country
participated in the open tryout, which took place last Friday
through Sunday.
The USA women’s volleyball team will compete at the Pan
American Cup in Puerto Rico in June, the World Grand Prix in Asia
and Italy in August and September, and the World Championships in
Japan in October and November.
The results of the tryouts should be announced sometime next
week according to Banachowski.
While players on the team that have already graduated begin to
train with the team right away, those selected that are still in
college typically do not begin training until the end of their
scholastic year.
For the UCLA players, trying out for the national team is not
only an opportunity to make an impression on a countrywide scale,
but it is a valuable experience that gives the players a different
kind of stage on which to succeed.
“It’s out of their comfort zone,” Banachowski
said. “They’re not practicing in their own gym,
there’s different coaches running the drills for them,
they’re up against players that they’ve played across
the net from and some that they’ve never seen
before.”
A unique element of the Bruins trying out this year is the fact
that three of the six UCLA players trying out ““ Socci, Spicer
and Sather ““ are freshmen. Banachowski’s squad relied
on young players all season long and the fact that three freshmen
are trying out for the national team bodes well for the UCLA
team’s immediate future.
“Usually, it’s the older players that try out for
the team, but I think that the younger players that went held their
own very well against the older players. It’s all about
getting experience and learning and I think it was a great
opportunity especially for our younger players to get involved like
this.”
Still, Banachowski, who came along with the players just to
watch the tryout, feels that it is the older players that probably
have the best shot at coming away with spots when the rosters are
announced.
“They were impressed with Nana and they were very
impressed with Rachell,” Banachowski said.
“Katie Carter also did a great job, but didn’t
finish the tryout because she had a commitment back here (in Los
Angeles). But they all did well and it will be interesting to see
the kind of responses they get from the group that was
watching.”