Students waiting on final volleyball decisions

This year has been hectic. All students, whether a freshman or a senior, have been struggling with the way that COVID-19 has affected them. There have been many cancellations in events that everyone has looked forward to. Students have been especially upset for the fact that they cannot participate in the things they love the most, sports. As of right now, the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) has decided that fall sports and winter sports are to be put on “pause”. There have been many sports that had to entirely cancel their seasons due to the coronavirus, but the state of Illinois still has yet to decide whether or not there will still be a girl’s volleyball season this year. As we come closer and closer to the season, students are maintaining their attitudes up high even through these troubling times.

There are many students that are starting to come to sense that they won’t experience this year’s volleyball season. Although some might say that keeping your head down isn’t the way to go, others might say it is the only way. “I really hope we do have a season, but the thing is that I don’t really think it will happen since almost everything is on hold right now. I am trying not to get my hopes up because there most likely won’t be a season this year,” said Riley Wills ‘21. Trying to be positive is a difficult thing when it comes to these sorts of circumstances. 

Not only has the virus affected the high school’s volleyball team, but it has also affected club volleyball teams. Senior Kellyn Romer says, “When school volleyball first got postponed, I was disappointed but not surprised, and then I heard that club would start and it was like a second light. We only got to practice for a little less than a month. Now that club is on hold too, I am extremely bummed because this is a sport that I really wanted to enjoy with my senior teammates.” Students were brought to dismay when they were told that the school’s team would be postponed, but finding out that even the club’s team would be on pause too, was almost like hearing a tragedy.

Going into a new school year, and hoping to get your best high school experience is a real adversary. This year, freshmen are not getting that opportunity. “It is hard missing tournaments, but meeting upperclassmen, being on the bus, getting to leave school early and having student sections was what I was looking forward to,” says Addison Hefel ‘24. There are so many little things that add up to an entire volleyball season, not just practices and games. These little things were memories that students used to bond with each other and create lasting friendships throughout high school and even later in life.

Students are still hoping for the best even after continuing to hear news that they don’t want. No one was ready for this pandemic, and trying to stay positive is difficult. As they are trying to wait for the final decisions, the girls have accepted it and are anticipating the best.