NAU Volleyball Camp

This was Alayna’s 1st year going to the NAU summer volleyball camp. NAU is only a 2.5 hour drive up north from Gilbert. So we packed up the car and headed up bright and early Friday morning to drop her off.

Once we got there we stopped for a quick breakfast and then checked her into her dorm. She was supposed to have a roommate but there was some last minute shuffling and she ended up having the room to herself. That was kind of a bummer for her. She was hoping to get a little more of a feel for what college life would feel like.

Once we got her unpacked and settled in it was time to say good-bye. It pulled at our heartstrings a bit. It was a little dose of what it will feel like if she decides to live on campus in college. But we all put on a brave face and no one even cried. Haha! 😛

The camp was Friday-Sunday and so Sunday Jared and I headed back up to Flagstaff to pick her up.

With not having a roommate and not signing up for camp with any friends she felt a bit isolated and alone over the weekend. That was hard. We talked a lot each night. She reached out to girls the best she could and by the last day she felt like she was making some good connections. She said she learned SO much from the coaches there and the head coach gave her some advice on something she’d been trying to improve recently and he was able to explain it in a way that just ‘clicked’ for her and it’s really improved her game! She was really pleased with all the coaching staff. They were great!

We got there a little early and we were able to see the last hour or so of their practice. At the end the girls were given a ball that they went around and had the coaches sign. They had the opportunity to speak one on one with them. She said that was a little nerve racking to talk to the head coach but he gave her a lot of great input!

All in all it was a great experience she said. She learned a lot about herself, putting herself in uncomfortable situations to see what she’s capable of, what college life might look like living on campus, improved her game and took input from the coaching staff, and above all learning through all of this that she can do hard things!

Really proud of this girl of ours! <3