Net Posts With Avie Niece
November 03, 2016 | Volleyball
Just a year ago, Avie Niece was wrapping up her high school career at Newport High School in Bellevue. One year later and Niece has been a starting middle blocker for most of the fall for the eighth-ranked Huskies as they battle for a Pac-12 title despite graduating six seniors from the 2015 squad. Despite missing a few matches recently with a lower leg injury, Niece was back in the starting lineup in UW's 3-0 win at Cal last Friday. Niece has averaged 1.23 blocks per set this year, helping UW rank seventh nationally in blocks per set. One of three local freshmen on the squad, Niece says UW was always her dream school and she was ready to say yes the moment they offered her a spot.
GoHuskies.com: What's been the most exciting and challenging parts of the season so far?
Avie Niece: I think it's exciting getting to play on a team that I watched in high school. Travelling is exciting even though it's exhausting. So I'd say the challenges are travelling that much and just working hard everyday at practice. Not having any bad days.
GH: As a freshman going through classes for the first time and being on the road have you had to learn new time-management skills?
AN: I think the upperclassmen helped a lot at the beginning and let us know to take easier classes to start with. I think teachers are pretty good at helping us by putting stuff online and whatnot. But just getting your homework done, it's not too bad.
GH: How are you liking your classes this quarter?
AN: They're interesting. I'm taking Gender Women in Sports, English and a general studies class so I like writing so English is interesting. I wrote a seven page paper for the first time, it was really long.
GH: Did you come into the season with many expectations about how much you would play or what your role would be?
AN: Keegan had told me in advance that I'd most likely be playing right when I came in which was really scary but also exciting. It's nice to have Kara to play with and compete against a little bit to just keep pushing ourselves to get better. It's hard not having a girl in our position who has been in the program for a while to look to, but it's fun getting to contribute.
GH: What parts of your game do you think you've made the most improvement in and is there something at the top of your list to keep working on?
AN: I'm learning things I didn't know existed in the volleyball world, which is fun. I think my offense has been a struggle all season, getting my timing right has been difficult. And just seeing the game at a higher level has been challenging.
GH: What age did you first start playing volleyball at?
AN: I was a freshman in high school so I was 14.
GH: Were you tall at the age? Did you take to it right away?
AN: I've been tall since Kindergarten but I grew up playing soccer until high school. When I found out I had extra bones in my feet, my PE coach told me I should play volleyball because he was my high school's coach for the volleyball team, so I got into that. Then I hated it at first, hated volleyball. But I like it more than any other sport I've ever played just because it's more challenging mentally. It's physically demanding in other ways, but it's a really mental game.
GH: I would have thought that having more bones in your feet would have given you some type of soccer advantage.
AN: No, I just twisted my ankle and had to be on crutches a whole bunch of times in eighth grade so I was like, 'this isn't the sport for me.'
GH: Was there a specific coach or family member or a teammate that really helped you out along the way to get you where you are now?
AN: I think my high school coach actually got me into volleyball. But Taylor Rosas, my first coach in club, let me on the team even though I never really thought I was good enough. And he helped me improve my first two years, he was my coach. So I give him a lot of credit.
GH: Do you have brothers and sisters? Do they play sports at all?
AN: I have an older sister. She played soccer growing up all through high school and then she rowed a little at San Diego State, and now she rides horses at Central (Washington).
GH: Being local, being from the area, do you have a lot of friends and family in the area coming to support you? Talk about the decision to stay close to home.
AN: Yeah, I thought I would hate it. I didn't want to stay close to home. But UW's volleyball program is what I wanted to be a part of so I went with it. So far it's been really great and I see my mom and my dad and my dog. And my sister goes to school in the area, so I get to see her some too and my friends too. So it's been nice.
GH: At what point did you commit to UW?
AN: Towards the end of high school season my junior year. They offered me and I automatically said yes. They were like, 'think about it for a few weeks' and I said okay. Then they called me back and I said, 'yes, of course.' Yeah, I was just waiting on them to see if they offered me before choosing a different school.
GH: Had you taken any other visits or anything at that point?
AN: Yeah I took visits to Colorado State, UCLA, Arizona State. I was about to go out and try Ohio State but UW offered me.
GH: How nice has it been to have a group of freshmen to go through the transition with?
AN: I don't know how Destiny did it (as the only freshman in 2015) but we really get along well, which is nice. In the social aspect, we have similar friends, we have fun in our dorm and we can share problems about volleyball too, which is nice. I knew Shayne just the year before from club so it was nice to have that. Just getting along with the freshmen is a big deal.
GH: What were the nerves like in the first couple of practices, your first match and how do you feel out on the court at this point in the season?
AN: Yeah, it was really challenging mentally the first couple of practices just because I was getting so much information. I still am, but now I can handle it better, break it down and focus on one thing at once, instead of everything. And the coaches have been really good at helping us with that too.
GH: Do you know what you want to study later on in school?
AN: I have a lot of ideas right now so I'm just trying to take a lot of classes my freshman year, see if any of them interest me. Hopefully, make a decision in the next two years.
GH: Have there been any pleasant surprises or things you didn't think you'd enjoy?
AN: I think everyone thought this was going to be a rebuilding year, I know I did, but we're still ranked first in the Pac-12, which is not so much surprising, just exciting I guess. And all the just girls work hard which I like. Practices are intense, which I was looking for and hoping for.
GoHuskies.com: What's been the most exciting and challenging parts of the season so far?
Avie Niece: I think it's exciting getting to play on a team that I watched in high school. Travelling is exciting even though it's exhausting. So I'd say the challenges are travelling that much and just working hard everyday at practice. Not having any bad days.
GH: As a freshman going through classes for the first time and being on the road have you had to learn new time-management skills?
AN: I think the upperclassmen helped a lot at the beginning and let us know to take easier classes to start with. I think teachers are pretty good at helping us by putting stuff online and whatnot. But just getting your homework done, it's not too bad.
GH: How are you liking your classes this quarter?
AN: They're interesting. I'm taking Gender Women in Sports, English and a general studies class so I like writing so English is interesting. I wrote a seven page paper for the first time, it was really long.
GH: Did you come into the season with many expectations about how much you would play or what your role would be?
AN: Keegan had told me in advance that I'd most likely be playing right when I came in which was really scary but also exciting. It's nice to have Kara to play with and compete against a little bit to just keep pushing ourselves to get better. It's hard not having a girl in our position who has been in the program for a while to look to, but it's fun getting to contribute.
GH: What parts of your game do you think you've made the most improvement in and is there something at the top of your list to keep working on?
AN: I'm learning things I didn't know existed in the volleyball world, which is fun. I think my offense has been a struggle all season, getting my timing right has been difficult. And just seeing the game at a higher level has been challenging.
GH: What age did you first start playing volleyball at?
AN: I was a freshman in high school so I was 14.
GH: Were you tall at the age? Did you take to it right away?
AN: I've been tall since Kindergarten but I grew up playing soccer until high school. When I found out I had extra bones in my feet, my PE coach told me I should play volleyball because he was my high school's coach for the volleyball team, so I got into that. Then I hated it at first, hated volleyball. But I like it more than any other sport I've ever played just because it's more challenging mentally. It's physically demanding in other ways, but it's a really mental game.
GH: I would have thought that having more bones in your feet would have given you some type of soccer advantage.
AN: No, I just twisted my ankle and had to be on crutches a whole bunch of times in eighth grade so I was like, 'this isn't the sport for me.'
GH: Was there a specific coach or family member or a teammate that really helped you out along the way to get you where you are now?
AN: I think my high school coach actually got me into volleyball. But Taylor Rosas, my first coach in club, let me on the team even though I never really thought I was good enough. And he helped me improve my first two years, he was my coach. So I give him a lot of credit.
GH: Do you have brothers and sisters? Do they play sports at all?
AN: I have an older sister. She played soccer growing up all through high school and then she rowed a little at San Diego State, and now she rides horses at Central (Washington).
GH: Being local, being from the area, do you have a lot of friends and family in the area coming to support you? Talk about the decision to stay close to home.
AN: Yeah, I thought I would hate it. I didn't want to stay close to home. But UW's volleyball program is what I wanted to be a part of so I went with it. So far it's been really great and I see my mom and my dad and my dog. And my sister goes to school in the area, so I get to see her some too and my friends too. So it's been nice.
GH: At what point did you commit to UW?
AN: Towards the end of high school season my junior year. They offered me and I automatically said yes. They were like, 'think about it for a few weeks' and I said okay. Then they called me back and I said, 'yes, of course.' Yeah, I was just waiting on them to see if they offered me before choosing a different school.
GH: Had you taken any other visits or anything at that point?
AN: Yeah I took visits to Colorado State, UCLA, Arizona State. I was about to go out and try Ohio State but UW offered me.
GH: How nice has it been to have a group of freshmen to go through the transition with?
AN: I don't know how Destiny did it (as the only freshman in 2015) but we really get along well, which is nice. In the social aspect, we have similar friends, we have fun in our dorm and we can share problems about volleyball too, which is nice. I knew Shayne just the year before from club so it was nice to have that. Just getting along with the freshmen is a big deal.
GH: What were the nerves like in the first couple of practices, your first match and how do you feel out on the court at this point in the season?
AN: Yeah, it was really challenging mentally the first couple of practices just because I was getting so much information. I still am, but now I can handle it better, break it down and focus on one thing at once, instead of everything. And the coaches have been really good at helping us with that too.
GH: Do you know what you want to study later on in school?
AN: I have a lot of ideas right now so I'm just trying to take a lot of classes my freshman year, see if any of them interest me. Hopefully, make a decision in the next two years.
GH: Have there been any pleasant surprises or things you didn't think you'd enjoy?
AN: I think everyone thought this was going to be a rebuilding year, I know I did, but we're still ranked first in the Pac-12, which is not so much surprising, just exciting I guess. And all the just girls work hard which I like. Practices are intense, which I was looking for and hoping for.
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