The following was written by sophomore setter Sarah Lewicki of Herald, Calif.
After a relaxing but busy summer, our team returned August 10 for the start of preseason. Fitness testing started off the week where we all did agility tests, tested our strength with weightlifting, and ran two 300-yard sprints and a mile. Don't worry, we all survived although we might've been a little sore after.
Preseason is a time of two-a-day practices (three hours in the morning and two in the afternoon!) where our team is challenged both mentally and physically. For this first week, we really worked on putting systems in place on the court, executing plays, and learning how to trust our teammates when working together. Especially for our seven new freshmen, this first week was important for them to work on their skills and see how the system really works here at Seattle U.
Preseason is also a time for freshmen to experience many new things. One of these new experiences for this week was taking an ice bath for the first time. I think some of them are learning to love the ice bath while others...well they might never try it again.
After finishing off a good week, the team headed to the San Juan Islands on Saturday to go kayaking. Everyone had a great time on the trip, myself included, and the trip was made even better with beautiful weather and seeing many whales while taking our team photos. After being away from Seattle for two months this was a great way to end my first week back and I'm excited to keep playing. It seems like things can only get better for our team!