The Final Hit he Rhodes Field House lit up every fall whe n the Lady Bisons volley– ball team stepped o nlO the court. The LadyBiso ns had been a power– house in th e Gulf South Conferen ce for m ost of th e decad e. But th e T team would n ot have gather ed its success ove r t h e years if it wasn ' t for the team '5 senio r leadership. Se nior Sarah Phipps was a Lady Bison fo r four years and was also a huge part of the team' s success over the years. Be ing one of the two seniors on the 2009 squad , Phipps stepped up as a leader fOI" the team. But she also knew tha t the team taught her a great d eal more. "Volleyba ll has taught me things like perseverance, self-confidence , friend ship and ti me managem ent ," Phipps said. "These traits are d efini tely keys to winn ing now, but will also be advan tageous as I trans ition towards g rowing up. " Phipps' time on the volleyball team had been bombarded with daily practices. long road trips and a dedicat ion t hat the average student couldn't imagine. "Some p eople argu e t h at p laying a co ll egi ate sport is more like a job , but it h as been much more r ewarding than that," P h i pp s sa id. But be i ng a part of a team was mu ch Inore than playing a gaIne for Phipps , She mad e memories not o nly o f wi nning r ecords and hard work , but also of f r iendsh ips and her time sp ent with her teammates. "Th e most fun thing about being on the team is laughing wi th the girls." Ph ipps said. "\Ve have a special bond and t h ere is hardly a day where we don' t see ou r teammates. " The Lady Bi so n s sp ent a lot of time togeth e r as they traveled all over th e country to p lay th e ir sport. T h ey even made a t rip to Orlando, Fl o rid a this year to compete in the Ro llin s Co ll ege Regiona l Tournament. Not only did t h ey comp ete in four games, but t h e team also took a surprise tri p to Sea Wo rld, "Some o f the greatest moments are bus t rips with th e teaIn," Ph ipps said . "Tha t 's when we c r eate th e most ch emist ry." Phipps said that the Lady Bi son voll eyball team chem is try was what ma de th e team so sp ecial. And th e success that the team has had over the yea r s gave no r easo n to think oth erwise. "We run in the same order. st retch in t h e same order and warm up wi th the same partner before every practice and game," Phipps said. "We are a t eam of habi t and we don 't plan o n changing that. " Joel Blake Row 1: M. Nesheva, W. Williams, A. Parker. L. Belt, E. Tate, A. Smith, J. Heimrich, S. Phipps, J. Smith. Row 2: S. Smith, K. Parker, A. Schinzing, S. Anderson, R. Smith, W. Williams, B. Graham, M. Rosenbaum, M. Giboney, K. Giboney. Freshman Bailee Graham & Sophomore Jessica Heimrich Craig Rainbolt Senior Manuela Nesheva Craig Rainbolt Senior Sarah Phipps Craig Rainbolt Sophomore Alex Smith Craig Rainbolt volleyball 281
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