The volleyball team will be starting its season this spring semester after being postponed in the fall because of COVID-19 restrictions.
“The indoor team hasn’t had the opportunity to compete against anyone but ourselves since Nov. 16, 2019, and to say we are ready would be one of the biggest understatements,” said head coach Angela Mooney. “We are so, so ready, ecstatic actually.”
They open their new season at home Friday and Saturday against UT-Arlington. This will be their only non-conference opponent before they begin conference play against Incarnate Word on Feb. 4.
The team brought on eight newcomers this season. Mooney said being able to have the fall semester to get ready and train has been an advantage brought on by the postponement.
“Many of the newcomers will make immediate impacts on the court and this will be very fun to watch,” Mooney said. “We still see this to be a season of growth and learning for our team as a whole so our biggest expectation is for our team to take advantage of our physicality, be intentional and compete hard no matter the opponent and continue to improve with each opportunity.”
Due to coronavirus restrictions, the Southland Conference has shortened seasons for most sports. The Wildcats will only play two non-conference games before they head into the 12-game conference schedule. This is a big difference from what a normal season would look like which would be closer to 25-30 total matches.
“It does feel weird playing in the spring,” said redshirt sophomore Madison Rohre. “But we are ready to play. I would much rather get a chance to play in the spring than have to wait until the fall.”
The Wildcats will play at 6 p.m. on Jan. 29 against UTA and will play them again the following day at 2 p.m.
Mooney said her players are very excited to show everything that they have worked on over the past semester.
“Our team has gained a lot of confidence with having all of fall to train with each other,” Rohre said. “Personally, I realized all the things I love about the sport and competing and it allowed me to remember that having the ability to play at ACU is a gift and nothing I should take for granted.”
