Holman, Boyle Gain Valuable Experience with USA Volleyball
LSU all-SEC sophomore Briana Holman and senior Helen Boyle were participants in the USA Women’s Volleyball A2 Program in Colorado Springs this past summer. The two were sent to Colorado in February for tryouts at the Olympic Training Facility on the recommendation from several coaches.
The program consisted of 270 athletes from around the country who were all competing to make one of three groups that each consisted of a 12-person roster.
Each group had the opportunity to play in a different part of the world. The first group played in China, while the second played in Europe and the third in Minneapolis at the Junior Olympics. Other SEC schools such as Ole Miss, Kentucky and Florida had representatives and Missouri’s SEC Freshman of the Year, Carly Kan, also participated.
“It was an absolutely amazing experience,” Holman said. “I was able to compete against some of the best players in the country in the Pac-12 and Big 10. I learned a lot. It was overall a great experience and I am very thankful for the opportunity.”
The intensity of competition was also something that both players seemed to strive for during their time this offseason.
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“We don’t normally get that, because we can’t be in the gym with our coaches,” Boyle explained. “So being able to play and get better throughout the summer was really awesome.”
Holman was selected to play for the first group that competed in China. She traveled and competed in games in Fuzhou, Sanming and Beijing.
“The style of play in China is a lot different. They’re a lot quicker, faster and more disciplined than we are here in America,” Holman said. “I gained so much experience over there.”
However, the biggest challenges in China were not volleyball, but the humidity and change of lifestyle.
“The humidity is much worse over there than in Baton Rouge,” Holman said. “It physically felt like it should be raining but it was just stickiness. I didn’t think it could get any worse than Baton Rouge humidity.
“The style of living was also hard. I couldn’t eat things that I would normally eat here to prepare for the game. It was a lot of rice and noodles. We can’t drink their tap water either so finding water was a struggle.”
Boyle was able to take part with the group in Minneapolis for 10 days in July, and the team immediately had two-a-day workouts when she arrived.
“It was almost like preseason, but in the middle of July with some of the best athletes in the country,” Boyle said.
The practices were held in a gym with no air conditioning, but Boyle was more than happy to stay here in America and play.
“It was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had,” she said. “It was really hard. The worst part about the trip was how sore I was and how hard they worked us. They push you harder than I ever thought I could be pushed, but in the end I would do it all over again.”