Net Posts With Lauren Sanders
August 31, 2017 | Volleyball
Lauren Sanders made her long-awaited Husky debut last weekend and the new tallest Husky certainly stood out, as she hit .354 over three matches with 23 kills and a very impressive 2.00 blocks per set and was named to the All-Tournament Team. Sanders had envisioned herself playing in Alaska Airlines Arena for the past several years, coming to matches from Snohomish before and after she committed to become a Dawg. One of the top middle blocker recruits in the country, Sanders talked to GoHuskies.com about her decision to enroll early at Washington, persevering through early struggles in the sport, and why she chose UW.
GoHuskies.com: What made you decide to graduate high school early and enroll here last spring?
Lauren Sanders: I think I made the decision towards the end of my junior year. I knew some volleyball players had done it so I talked to Keegan and asked if that was an option and he said yes. Then I talked to my principal to see if that was an option for me academically and he said it was. He'd only had one person do it before and it wasn't for athletic reasons so I kind of was the first person to do that in my school really. I talked to my counselor and my parents, and we fit all my classes into one semester. At that point I wasn't too caught up in missing the last semester of senior year, I was ready to kind of move on. Once I committed sophomore year I was super excited to get here, because it was so close, and I would come to volleyball games and practices because it was so conveniently close by. So it didn't really feel like I was moving away, it just felt like I was moving in to UW. It didn't feel like I was dropping everything and leaving because I was so close, so I was able to go home when I wanted to, my parents were really close by, I had some high school friends come up on the weekends, and I went back to my high school prom, so it was kind of the best of both worlds.
GH: Did you move straight into the dorms in the spring?
LS: Yeah, I moved in to the same building that the other four freshmen were in at the time, I just was with four random roommates. They were all great and super nice, and I was super busy so I didn't get to know them that well, but it was a good experience.
GH: How much do you think it helped you get prepared for this season, being here in the sprint and getting to go on the European trip as well?
LS: I definitely think that practice in the spring just made me more comfortable with what I was learning, because when you first come in there's so much to learn and so many different things than I was used to from club, it's a whole different level. So being here in spring gave me a few extra months to really adjust to that and get used to the practice schedule and waking up early and balancing time. The Europe trip was such a huge deal, a once in a lifetime experience that I got to sort of hop on. So I got a lot of experience and was able to just adjust quicker I think.
GH: You had a coup minor injuries in the spring and again in Europe, was that tough to be patient when you were looking forward to jumping right in?
LS: It was very frustrating, I think it was the first game of our spring scrimmage against Oregon I kind of tore up my ankle, but I took the attitude that I'm here, I have great trainers, I'm going to get over this, but it was a little difficult because I had just come here this spring and I was working really hard and then all of a sudden had to take two or three weeks off. Then in Europe the same thing kind of happened, I dislocated my finger the first match there, so that was a little rough. Just a month before I had gotten over the ankle injury and was just getting back to playing, but thankfully it was just a small injury and I was able to join at the end of the trip. Those two things just taught me injuries happen, it's part of the game, and luckily they weren't too serious.
GH: What were your favorite parts of the Europe trip?
LS: The first game I got back from my finger injury, I think we played Croatia, and that was a great game. We were just on fire and it was super fun, and I just kind of decided to play with no fear even with this cast on my hand. Then the second thing was I just loved Lake Bled. I kind of fell in love with Slovenia and that whole area. It was just so gorgeous and I felt blessed to be able to visit such a cool place like that.
GH: What did you think of your first weekend of matches and what parts of your game are you working on the most right now?
LS: I felt last weekend was super fun. Obviously it was my first time playing here in Alaska Airlines, and that was a really cool experience. No matter what happens in a game, I'm still just always working off whatever we're doing in practice, and for me right now that's a lot of offensive hitting and getting my timing right, and seeing how good I can be in all sorts of different situations.
GH: How did you first get into volleyball? Did anyone else in your family play it?
LS: My mom played in high school, so I think I started around fifth or sixth grade. My parents said, "We need to get you into a sport, because you're going to be tall and athletic." And I had tried basketball before but it never really connected with me, so they said, "Why don't you try volleyball?" I didn't really know what it was. I think sixth grade I started playing at some Boys & Girls Club rec league, that was the first time I ever touched a volleyball. I wasn't very good and didn't really enjoy it, it was just something I did with my friends. Then seventh grade my dad got me to go to my first club tryout. I didn't really want to go, I didn't know what club volleyball was at the time, and he just said, "I really think you should try it," and I could barely serve it over the net, and I would jump and the ball would hit my head instead of my hand, and I was probably one of the worst people there but the coach took me just because I think she could see I was tall. But that was the year that I really improved. I got a lot of coaching and got a lot of reps and that was the year I kind of knew volleyball was the sport for me. So my dad gently pushed me in that direction.
GH: When did it start to seem like something you might be really good at and could take to the college level?
LS: My freshman year I still wasn't very good and I was uncoordinated and I had a lot of stuff to learn, but I remember I started getting some recruiting letters in the mail and some interest from coaches, so I kind of realized, "wow, maybe if I keep working hard at this and keep doing what I've been doing in these club seasons I could go far in it. Let's see how far it takes me." I talked to my club coach and he said I could play in college if I wanted, and I didn't really realize that the recruiting process started that early or that I was good enough, because I hadn't been in the game that long and didn't know what good volleyball was. So it was around that time I realized wow, I should start thinking of the club that I play for, and find the best players and the best training to challenge myself to get better. In volleyball it's so important to find the right place to play so you get that training, and get those reps and that competition. I started talking to more colleges, and then into my sophomore year I realized I had to make the decision of where do I want to go now?
GH: What was the recruiting process like with Washington and what went into your final decision?
LS: I think it was my freshman year, I was first recruited by Jim (McLaughlin) and so I came on a visit with Jim and I really liked it. Then I didn't talk to him for a while after that because I was still visiting other schools. Then the coaching switch happened, and I didn't know if anything had changed or if Keegan would still want to recruit me. Then middle of my sophomore year I think that was when Keegan started recruiting me over the summer. I really loved Washington and how strong the program always was, and how the program is handled here. Just the fans and how over the years the program has had such a strong reputation, and then I also just loved the coaches, I loved Keegan and Tui and Johnathan. Out of all the places I looked at I really just thought that I connected with the coaches the best. I loved the team as well and was close to home, so it just felt right.
GH: Did you have a lot of friends and family here to watch this past weekend?
LS: I had all my family, and I have a lot of friends that are coming here in the fall and they've said how they're coming to watch our games and they're so excited, so that's really cool to be able to be surrounded by your friends and go somewhere where you've known all these people for a while.
GH: How did you get into the USA youth/junior pipeline and what was it like playing on the Junior National Team?
LS: I think it was the end of my sophomore year I was invited to the Girls Youth National Training Team which is 24 people, and then I went and did the tryout but I didn't make that. So the next year I thought I may as well try again, and I did the high performance tryout, made the roster for the Junior National Training Team, and that turned out to be a pretty good tryout for me, so I made the Junior National Team. I think I got started with USA just because my club coach said give it a shot, show up to this high performance thing, you never know and your name is out there so just see what happens. It was really fun. We started in Miami and then went to Fort Lauderdale and that's where the tournament was. We played at Florida International University and I think we played Dominican Republic in the final and that was a pretty intense match. We lost a pretty close one but it was fun because the Dominican Republic had a ton of fans come out and they were super into it.
GH: Did you grow up always in Snohomish and what do you like about it?
LS: Yeah, I was born in Everett and then I moved to Snohomish so I've been in that area my whole life. I just really love Washington. Snohomish is a pretty chill place, it's a lot of fields and farming but close enough to the city. It's just really pretty and close to hiking and rivers and lakes.
GH: It's still early, but have you considered what you want to major in?
LS: I came in thinking I really want to do nursing. Doing nursing with volleyball in four years is pretty much impossible with your schedule, but right now I'm planning on getting the pre-requisites for nursing out of the way and then seeing where that takes me. I might major in Biology and then after try to become a medical assistant or go into nursing school after my four years are over, but somewhere in that field is what I'm thinking of.
GH: Thanks for the chat!
LS: No problem!
GoHuskies.com: What made you decide to graduate high school early and enroll here last spring?
Lauren Sanders: I think I made the decision towards the end of my junior year. I knew some volleyball players had done it so I talked to Keegan and asked if that was an option and he said yes. Then I talked to my principal to see if that was an option for me academically and he said it was. He'd only had one person do it before and it wasn't for athletic reasons so I kind of was the first person to do that in my school really. I talked to my counselor and my parents, and we fit all my classes into one semester. At that point I wasn't too caught up in missing the last semester of senior year, I was ready to kind of move on. Once I committed sophomore year I was super excited to get here, because it was so close, and I would come to volleyball games and practices because it was so conveniently close by. So it didn't really feel like I was moving away, it just felt like I was moving in to UW. It didn't feel like I was dropping everything and leaving because I was so close, so I was able to go home when I wanted to, my parents were really close by, I had some high school friends come up on the weekends, and I went back to my high school prom, so it was kind of the best of both worlds.
GH: Did you move straight into the dorms in the spring?
LS: Yeah, I moved in to the same building that the other four freshmen were in at the time, I just was with four random roommates. They were all great and super nice, and I was super busy so I didn't get to know them that well, but it was a good experience.
GH: How much do you think it helped you get prepared for this season, being here in the sprint and getting to go on the European trip as well?
LS: I definitely think that practice in the spring just made me more comfortable with what I was learning, because when you first come in there's so much to learn and so many different things than I was used to from club, it's a whole different level. So being here in spring gave me a few extra months to really adjust to that and get used to the practice schedule and waking up early and balancing time. The Europe trip was such a huge deal, a once in a lifetime experience that I got to sort of hop on. So I got a lot of experience and was able to just adjust quicker I think.
GH: You had a coup minor injuries in the spring and again in Europe, was that tough to be patient when you were looking forward to jumping right in?
LS: It was very frustrating, I think it was the first game of our spring scrimmage against Oregon I kind of tore up my ankle, but I took the attitude that I'm here, I have great trainers, I'm going to get over this, but it was a little difficult because I had just come here this spring and I was working really hard and then all of a sudden had to take two or three weeks off. Then in Europe the same thing kind of happened, I dislocated my finger the first match there, so that was a little rough. Just a month before I had gotten over the ankle injury and was just getting back to playing, but thankfully it was just a small injury and I was able to join at the end of the trip. Those two things just taught me injuries happen, it's part of the game, and luckily they weren't too serious.
GH: What were your favorite parts of the Europe trip?
LS: The first game I got back from my finger injury, I think we played Croatia, and that was a great game. We were just on fire and it was super fun, and I just kind of decided to play with no fear even with this cast on my hand. Then the second thing was I just loved Lake Bled. I kind of fell in love with Slovenia and that whole area. It was just so gorgeous and I felt blessed to be able to visit such a cool place like that.
GH: What did you think of your first weekend of matches and what parts of your game are you working on the most right now?
LS: I felt last weekend was super fun. Obviously it was my first time playing here in Alaska Airlines, and that was a really cool experience. No matter what happens in a game, I'm still just always working off whatever we're doing in practice, and for me right now that's a lot of offensive hitting and getting my timing right, and seeing how good I can be in all sorts of different situations.
GH: How did you first get into volleyball? Did anyone else in your family play it?
LS: My mom played in high school, so I think I started around fifth or sixth grade. My parents said, "We need to get you into a sport, because you're going to be tall and athletic." And I had tried basketball before but it never really connected with me, so they said, "Why don't you try volleyball?" I didn't really know what it was. I think sixth grade I started playing at some Boys & Girls Club rec league, that was the first time I ever touched a volleyball. I wasn't very good and didn't really enjoy it, it was just something I did with my friends. Then seventh grade my dad got me to go to my first club tryout. I didn't really want to go, I didn't know what club volleyball was at the time, and he just said, "I really think you should try it," and I could barely serve it over the net, and I would jump and the ball would hit my head instead of my hand, and I was probably one of the worst people there but the coach took me just because I think she could see I was tall. But that was the year that I really improved. I got a lot of coaching and got a lot of reps and that was the year I kind of knew volleyball was the sport for me. So my dad gently pushed me in that direction.
GH: When did it start to seem like something you might be really good at and could take to the college level?
LS: My freshman year I still wasn't very good and I was uncoordinated and I had a lot of stuff to learn, but I remember I started getting some recruiting letters in the mail and some interest from coaches, so I kind of realized, "wow, maybe if I keep working hard at this and keep doing what I've been doing in these club seasons I could go far in it. Let's see how far it takes me." I talked to my club coach and he said I could play in college if I wanted, and I didn't really realize that the recruiting process started that early or that I was good enough, because I hadn't been in the game that long and didn't know what good volleyball was. So it was around that time I realized wow, I should start thinking of the club that I play for, and find the best players and the best training to challenge myself to get better. In volleyball it's so important to find the right place to play so you get that training, and get those reps and that competition. I started talking to more colleges, and then into my sophomore year I realized I had to make the decision of where do I want to go now?
GH: What was the recruiting process like with Washington and what went into your final decision?
LS: I think it was my freshman year, I was first recruited by Jim (McLaughlin) and so I came on a visit with Jim and I really liked it. Then I didn't talk to him for a while after that because I was still visiting other schools. Then the coaching switch happened, and I didn't know if anything had changed or if Keegan would still want to recruit me. Then middle of my sophomore year I think that was when Keegan started recruiting me over the summer. I really loved Washington and how strong the program always was, and how the program is handled here. Just the fans and how over the years the program has had such a strong reputation, and then I also just loved the coaches, I loved Keegan and Tui and Johnathan. Out of all the places I looked at I really just thought that I connected with the coaches the best. I loved the team as well and was close to home, so it just felt right.
GH: Did you have a lot of friends and family here to watch this past weekend?
LS: I had all my family, and I have a lot of friends that are coming here in the fall and they've said how they're coming to watch our games and they're so excited, so that's really cool to be able to be surrounded by your friends and go somewhere where you've known all these people for a while.
GH: How did you get into the USA youth/junior pipeline and what was it like playing on the Junior National Team?
LS: I think it was the end of my sophomore year I was invited to the Girls Youth National Training Team which is 24 people, and then I went and did the tryout but I didn't make that. So the next year I thought I may as well try again, and I did the high performance tryout, made the roster for the Junior National Training Team, and that turned out to be a pretty good tryout for me, so I made the Junior National Team. I think I got started with USA just because my club coach said give it a shot, show up to this high performance thing, you never know and your name is out there so just see what happens. It was really fun. We started in Miami and then went to Fort Lauderdale and that's where the tournament was. We played at Florida International University and I think we played Dominican Republic in the final and that was a pretty intense match. We lost a pretty close one but it was fun because the Dominican Republic had a ton of fans come out and they were super into it.
GH: Did you grow up always in Snohomish and what do you like about it?
LS: Yeah, I was born in Everett and then I moved to Snohomish so I've been in that area my whole life. I just really love Washington. Snohomish is a pretty chill place, it's a lot of fields and farming but close enough to the city. It's just really pretty and close to hiking and rivers and lakes.
GH: It's still early, but have you considered what you want to major in?
LS: I came in thinking I really want to do nursing. Doing nursing with volleyball in four years is pretty much impossible with your schedule, but right now I'm planning on getting the pre-requisites for nursing out of the way and then seeing where that takes me. I might major in Biology and then after try to become a medical assistant or go into nursing school after my four years are over, but somewhere in that field is what I'm thinking of.
GH: Thanks for the chat!
LS: No problem!
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