By Amanda Joseph
LSU Sports Information
Prior to every volleyball game, Lauren DeGirolamo has a pre-game ritual that includes listening to music while envisioning herself blocking opponent’s attacks as she leads the team to success.
DeGirolamo is from Belleville, Ill., and decided to come to LSU based on the excitement of a new experience.
“I knew I wanted to play away from home and experience college on my own, and LSU seemed to be the perfect fit for me,” she said. “It was hard to commit because I knew it was going to be such a big decision for me. It was hard to think about the reality of playing at LSU while in Illinois,” she stated.
DeGirolamo said that the hardest part about playing at LSU is the fact that she left her friends and family back home.
“But the one thing I love about this volleyball team is the closeness that surrounds us. I believe I have made lifelong friends and that helps when you are away from home,” said DeGirolamo.
For over a year, this volleyball player has been preparing herself to step onto the court and show her family and friends what she has learned at LSU.
“As a redshirt freshman, I was able to learn from the leaders last year. I practiced every day and played spring ball, so even though I had no court time last year, I don’t feel like a freshmen, because I have spent a year training,” said DeGirolamo.
“It has been so exciting to finally play, and make things happen that I have been perfecting over the past year,” she said.
The volleyball team is ranked No.12 in the nation, and with that ranking comes more expectations to win.
“It is a little pressure to know that we are a ranked team, but it is a welcomed pressure. Teams run onto the court and play us with a little more vengeance. It makes everyone rise to the occasion of leading the team to success,” she said
Success for this team comes in many different ways, but trusting in one another plays a key role in achieving greatness. “In order for our team to succeed, we have to trust in each other to carry out our specific jobs. And that’s exactly how we play the game…through trust,” she said.
DeGirolamo has become a silent leader on this nationally ranked volleyball team. “I am not a very vocal person. I try to lead by example,” says DeGirolamo. “In order to be a leader on this team, you have to play hard…all the time. Everyone plays hard and we end up feeding off one each other to make the plays we need.”
DeGirolamo serves as a middle blocker on the team. “My first and foremost job is blocking all of the opponent’s hits,” she said.
“It is a very up-tempo position and requires quick reflexes in order to hit attacks from the other team,” said DeGirolamo.
With the help of DeGirolamo’s attacks, this team is looking to do great things in the NCAA tournament. “As a team we are definitely looking to improve from last year. We were eliminated in the first round,” she said.
The team came home last year disappointed and DeGirolamo said that the team doesn’t want any regrets this year. “We want to do really well in the SEC, but our goal is to focus on one game at a time while constantly thinking about the future,” she said.
With only one loss this season, this volleyball team currently leads the SEC. Despite this success, LSU’s volleyball team knows they have to take it one step at a time to reach their goal of NCAA champions.