The 2014 signing class was a historic one for LSU volleyball.
Ranked as the No. 13 class in the nation, the Tigers hauled in six highly-recruited players, including five from out-of-state.
St. Amant standout Toni Rodriguez, the lone Louisiana product in the 2014 class, sat out her freshman campaign due to an injury suffered her senior year of high school and earned a redshirt.
Rodriguez, along with the trio of Kelly Quinn, Gina Tillis and Cheyenne Wood are the last remaining juniors of that celebrated signing class.
The trio’s outstanding high school careers had Jill Wilson, associate head coach and recruiting coordinator of LSU’s volleyball team, excited to have the opportunity to influence them to come play in Purple and Gold.
Wood’s versatility especially stood out to Wilson during her trip to watch the Angier, N.C. native play. Wood played primarily as a setter in high school, but transitioned to a more defensive role in her freshman season at LSU.
“She played incredible defense,” said Wilson. “She had a lot of good ball control, and she added a lot of different things to her game so that we could be flexible in how we used her.”
Going from being such an integral part of her high school squad to accepting more of a reserve role in her first year of college was a tough adjustment for Wood, who played in only 18 matches and 56 total sets as a freshman.
“I just wanted to come in and help the team out in any way I could,” said Wood. “I think that’s why we were so successful the first year.”
When she made the switch from defensive specialist back to setter after her first year, Wood saw her playing time increase dramatically, as she would become the only LSU player to see time in all 108 sets and play in all 29 matches in 2015.
The position change wasn’t an easy task, but it was a necessary one for the team.
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“The team was really helpful in the transition,” said Wood. “They did a good job of always letting me get extra reps and picking me up when I wasn’t doing a good job.”
Now in her junior campaign, Wood began the season as the LSU libero, a challenging role even for a player with her confidence and skillset.
“I haven’t had much experience playing libero, but I’ll do whatever this team needs me to do,” said Wood. “That’s what I’m here for, and that’s what I try to bring that’s different.”
Quinn, who has also seen time in the libero role this season, hasn’t had to change positions as much as Wood, but has similarly grown as a player and has seen her role on the court increase over the course of her first two years.
Wilson believes the jump from sophomore to junior year is a player’s biggest adjustment in terms of confidence and experience, adding that all three girls have made that jump.
“It’s actually been really fun to see how their confidence has grown as they’ve become young women,” said Wilson. “The junior year is really when you start to see the most growth from players. I can’t wait to see how far they go and use what they’ve learned off the court to become better volleyball players.”
The coaching staff’s concern for not only the players’ on-court success, but also their well-being outside of volleyball is part of what led Tillis to sign with the Tigers back in 2014.
“Honestly, I didn’t consider LSU at first, but this coaching staff is so invested in us,” said Tillis. “Not just with winning, but making sure we grow up and we can be ready for the real world.”
Tillis hit the ground running her freshman year, playing in 71 total sets and recording 199 kills. She then played in 82 sets and led the team with 295 kills as a sophomore.
Even though 2015 was her breakout year, Tillis recognizes that it was a down year for the team and has a positive outlook for 2016.
“We really just need to forget about the entire season last year,” said Tillis. “We just have to make our own statement because we can be really good if we put our minds to it.”
With second-year transfer Tiara Gibson listed as the only senior on the roster, LSU will be relying heavily on its core of juniors, once a part of a talented freshman class themselves, to mentor yet another highly-talented group of freshmen.
“Our junior class has to be great for this season and they know that,” said Wilson. “It’s a lot of pressure, but it’s nothing they can’t handle. I think that they’ll keep getting better and help the freshmen understand what they need to do.”