Skylight volleyball still working towards their bright future on the court

Not only are college campuses shut down across America right now, so too are sports, and while teams that play fall sports collegiality have some time to know what their fate is, their offseason is still important, and many teams are having to adjust.

One of those teams is the Montana State University-Northern volleyball team.

The Skylights would normally be neck-deep in their spring training, where the players hit the weight room, work on conditioning and get in some game-like reps in the offseason. The preparations for the fall 2020 season are important for the Skylights, but COVID-19 has forced Northern to adjust.

And according to MSU-N head coach Jerry Wagner, he and his team have been making the most of the current situation, keeping themselves ahead even though it feels like they should be behind.

"Normally in the spring we're able to condition more, along with being able to practice more," Wagner said. "We try and have three to four weekend, one-day tournaments, too, where we're competing with outside competition. We're still able to do strength and conditioning, but we weren't able to play anybody in offseason."

To still be able to do as much of that process as possible, Wagner made sure that his team could still stay in shape and keep sharp even if they are having to do so at home.

"Normally, you get them a lot of competition against other teams because they can play more," Wagner continued. "It doesn't count other than game-time reps. I'm pretty impressed with what we've been able to accomplish. I have a strength and conditioning program that everybody is doing. I've given them workouts they can do at home and we can still go outside, so we can still get in conditioning. They all left Northern with a volleyball so they can keep that busy. We're going six days a week with strength, conditioning and volleyball training."

Last season, the Skylights went 6-20 overall, 0-12 in conference and fell to the University of Providence in the Frontier Conference Tournament. That may not have been the most ideal season Northern wished to have, but there was still a lot of positive things on the court, too.

With players like Shania Neubauer, Rylee Burmester, Katia Michelotti and Hailey Warren leading the charge for most of the season, the Skylights put in a great effort in the fall of 2019. Northern put up great games against out-of-conference and in-conference opponents throughout the year, including pressuring the University of Montana Western Bulldogs into five-set games in both meetings between the two squads.

At the end of the day, 2019 may not have been what the Skylights were aiming for, but Wagner knew that his team was winning in other ways.

"I'm not deterred by anything that's taken place," Wagner said. "We were what we were. We're just trying to get better every day. It felt like we made some great strides, even during the season. I've coached quite a few years, but I can honestly say I've never seen a team give it their best, wherever it was, as this group did. If you can answer that call every day, you're on your way. I asked them after every match if they gave it their best, and I can look them right in the eye and they can look back and say yes, we did. There's some victory in that."

And now in 2020, Wagner is looking forward to what his team can accomplish. He has made sure his team has put in whatever effort they can to stay on top of their game and combat the challenges that come with COVID-19 halting almost everything within the sports world.

On top of that, the Skylights' five new recruits have been doing their best when it comes to the at-home spring training. Jessa Chvilicek, Alana Graves, Angel Navor, Emily Feller and Julia Burden may be new to the MSU-Northern volleyball program, but the five athletes are already giving it everything they have to help their team in the offseason.

Wagner has been happy to see both his recruits and his returners doing good work in the offseason, as well as still managing to stay in touch with his team during the trying times.

"We've started out training and I've been able to recruit really well," Wagner said. "There's some kids I'm dying to see out on the court and they're going to add so much to this veteran team I have returning. The nice thing about this offseason is that I've never spent so much time with five new kids that have signed on to start in the fall of 2020. I've been able to right now. We've had team meetings every week, they have a buddy and their working in groups. Normally that stuff takes place in August and we've been able to really implement it now."

Meanwhile, COVID-19 has been a constant obstacle that has gotten in the way of spring sports and training. With the stay-at-home order issued by Montana Gov. Steve Bullock, athletes and coaches have to abide by the guidelines that were set when Bullock issued the order, which has made things relatively quiet when it comes to sports.

Things are tough right now for many people, but Wagner and other coaches across the state are still hopeful for something to change for the better.

"Obviously, we need to stay with this social distancing thing and whatever guidelines we're supposed to follow," Wagner said. "We put a little project together here that we might unleash on Monday. I feel bad for all the other sports right now, but not for my team. We're going into the summer and they're going to be doing the same thing they're doing right now. I'm hopeful on this day and praying that we can all get back to something normal. But I think we're going to get a green light to return to sports and other activities before that. I'm optimistic that we're not going to skip a beat if we return back to action."

There is still quite some time before the Skylights hit the court once again for the 2020 season, but Wagner and his team have been working hard to make strides despite what the current situation might be. Volleyball is a team sport for sure and COVID-19 has disrupted that, but Northern is still doing their best and working hard to prepare for the fall.

Spring training may not be normal in 2020, but Wagner and the Skylights know that as long as they can still get outside and stay in shape, they will be ready for whatever comes their way in the future. Even with the sports world at a standstill, the Skylights are setting up a spike that looks to cut through the coronavirus and forge a path to glory in the fall.