Cedarville University Yellow Jackets

December 5, 2016

Hello everyone! I want to start by thanking all of you who have taken the time to read my blog this year! I know that we are truly blessed to have friends and family that truly love this team and what we stand for, so thank you for your prayers and support during the season.

This year, as I have said before, has been special. I look back over the season and I am so overwhelmed by the blessing it has been. We started the season with five new additions to the team and we've become sisters in just a few months. We have gone through countless hours of practice, trips, devotions, games, and study time and still I feel as though I want to spend more time with these girls! It is something special to have a group of girls that love the Lord first, but also love each other so well. I can't thank God enough for each and every girl on this 2016 team.

Coach Walters...Thank you for stepping up to the plate this year. You have over-compensated for the lack of an assistant coach and you did it with flying colors. I can't image the time and effort you put into the team, especially after hours at home. Thank you for believing in us and for not going crazy on road trips when we sing Justin Bieber at the top of our lungs from the back of the bus.

To the Freshmen, you guys are amazing! Thank you, Katie, Brooke, Erin, and Kylie for your willingness to enter a tight-knit team and become comfortable so fast. Thank you for being such an integral part of this team.

Sophomore class...Abby and Faith...man we're crazy but I love you. I can't wait to see what we can accomplish in these next two years!

Juniors...thank you for always putting a smile on our faces. Gabby and Krissy you never fail to be there when I need you!

Lastly Seniors...Rachel, Kristin, Angela, and Abby. I am not sure if the words "thank you" can be enough. I have never been on a team with leaders like you all are. Rachel...Thank you for always knowing exactly what to say to Coach and for giving him the words to say when he can't think of them! Thank you for being such a constant encouragement and friend over the past two years. Kristin...Thank you for keeping me sane sometimes! You know exactly what to say when I need it, and I can't wait to see what an amazing, kind, and loving teacher you will become! Angela...I don't know where to start but to say that I've never met such a sweet, joyful, and loving heart as yours. Thank you for showing me the importance of radiating the image of God to all who are around you. Abby...Thank you for teaching me humility. For reminding me to always work hard at all I do. Thank you for never failing to smile, I love it. To all the seniors; thank you for making this team what it is today. From the first day you walked onto the volleyball court as a Cedarville athlete, to the last time you wore the jersey, you made an impact that will last forever. God has used all four of you to bring this team to places it has never been before. I thank God for the four of you and for the two short years I had to play with you, to learn from you, and to grow in Christ with you. I love all of you! Never forget that you are loved and cherished by the 2016 team!

Writing this blog fills me with such joy and peace that God did exactly what He had planned with this team this year. On the volleyball court, we won a lot and accomplished much. We made history and put ourselves in an awesome position at the end of the year! We won in that regard, but we also won the spiritual battle this year. When we fell, we leaned on Christ for support. When we were tired, we pushed each other to look to Christ for strength. When we were successful we reminded each other to give all the praise and glory back to our Father. Yet most importantly, we never failed to see the sport that we play, as a mission field for the Kingdom. I hope and pray that Cedarville Volleyball always continues that mission.

Thank you again for following along this season! There are so many more stories and memories I could go on and on telling you of what God did this season, but I may never stop writing! This is where the journey ends this year! God is good and He does good. I thank him for that!

In Him,

Taylor Wilkerson

Psalm 118:29
"You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God; I will extol you. Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast loves endures forever."


December 2, 2016

Special Edition - Tourney Time (Day 4)

(Taylor Wilkerson will be posting a daily BLOG update throughout the Lady Jackets trip to Big Rapids, Michigan for the NCAA II Volleyball Championship Tournament)

December 1, 2016

Special Edition - Tourney Time (Day 3) November 30, 2016

Special Edition - Tourney Time (Day 2)

November 29, 2016

Special Edition - Tourney Time (Day 1)

We have arrived! Cedarville Volleyball has made it to Big Rapids, Michigan! We left campus today around 2 p.m. after having a great send off. We were prayed over which I hope will set the tone for the weekend! We are pumped and cannot wait for Thursday!

The bus ride was smooth and we even were graced with some Jimmy John's for dinner, one of my favorites. The team is currently getting settled in their rooms and most likely going to bed early to start off our day well tomorrow. The "right sides" room is enjoying a nice Hallmark movie before bed...tis' the season!

The team is in high spirits so far and I hope to continue to tell you all of our amazing NCAA tournament journey!

Thanks for all the support!

November 28, 2016

Hello everyone,

I sincerely hope that you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving, full of family, food, and laughter. Many of my teammates and I had the opportunity to go home even though we are still in season. Coach graciously gave us Wednesday through Saturday to be with our family and friends. The team enjoyed that small period of rest and relaxation in between a very busy time of the season and of the semester. I am so thankful for the few days to sit and play games or watch movies.

Don't worry yourself too much...the team did have some homework for this upcoming week. Coach prepared us well with scouting sheets to study over the break. In our hunt for a win in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, we have been scouting Findlay diligently. We had practice Saturday night, Sunday afternoon, and today (Monday) to prepare for our match on Thursday at Ferris State University at 12 noon in Big Rapids, Michigan.

The team leaves campus Tuesday at 2 p.m. for the historic trip. We are excited but also focused on our goals. We don't want to just make the first round, we want to make a statement and prove that Cedarville is right where they should be. As we prepare by emailing professors, packing, and practicing, we also cannot wait to show Christ to those we come in contact with.

Thank you for following this precious team. We are THANKFUL for YOU!

In Him,

Taylor


November 21, 2016

"Enjoy the journey," a teammate once told me before a match. At that point in my collegiate career, that statement meant very little to me. Of course I was going to enjoy every part of the match I was playing, or so I thought. Looking back, I may not have lived up to that thought and over the past year I have truly clung to this. First, I want to tell you about how my team has clung to this over the past year. Exactly one year ago at this time our season had ended. We had been defeated in the G-MAC championship title match versus Trevecca Nazarene. We were stunned. We were confused. We were angry to be honest. When you lose a match that held the school's first opportunity to go to the NCAA Division II tournament, it is pretty hard to look forward. I knew that a loss was God's plan, but I wasn't sure what we were going to learn from it.

Today I sit here telling you we learned TREMENDOUSLY from that loss. Since January, this team has worked tirelessly to prepare for our next opportunity to play competitively. We became a "family on a mission" in the words of Abby Shelton. We learned and were taught through the wisdom of our coach that preparation is the key to success, not only in volleyball but in life. We learned that the beginning, the middle, and the end of a season are important to reaching your goals. We learned that we failed in those ways last season. As we headed into the summer and the preseason, we knew that the work and determination to improve and prepare was not for only the first match of the season, but also for the last match of the season.

Coach has always filled our schedule with tough teams. I think in years past, that has been an intimidation. This year we wanted it. We wanted to play the toughest opponents we could play because we had prepared for them. I cannot tell you that every competitive opponent we faced we beat, but I can tell you that our 26-8 overall record speaks for itself. I can tell you that our appearance in the Midwest Regional rankings for the first time in program history happened this year. I can also tell you that this past weekend, this team brought home the G-MAC Championship trophy along with its first automatic bid into the NCAA DII National Tournament. Accounted for is our returning talent and increase in talents, but I truly account most of our success to this season that to God, but also to our will to listen to Coach in that we must continually prepare for anything that comes our way.

This past weekend in Mason, Ohio, I felt an overwhelming shift in attitude and desire. Last year, we walked into each match somewhat entitled. We did not prepare well mentally and lacked the ability to adapt to adversity. This year, we absolutely dominated the preparation game. We scouted well and continued to remind ourselves of our team goals. Walking into the championship match, I don't think I've ever felt more prepared to play a team. I think my team felt the same. It definitely showed as we battled, and I mean BATTLED to the finish line in an exhilarating five-set match against Davis & Elkins College. We adapted well and never lost focus on our final goal. I have to attribute most of that the constant and helpful push of Coach. He never gave up on us, and we never gave up on each other. The determination this team showed in that match was incredible. I wish you could experience it with us on the court! What a special feeling. Back to the idea of "enjoying the journey." That feeling I just mentioned, I will harbor that in my heart and memories forever. I truly enjoyed every single up and down moment of that match. I enjoyed the journey of the weekend; doing homework with my roomies, eating four meals a day even when we practiced for an hour, watching film together, and sharing (with some shed tears) what we were thankful this year. I soaked up every last second of this weekend with this special team God has assembled.

Many people, don't get to experience what we did this weekend, and we are eternally thankful to God for choosing us as His lights on Cedarville University's Volleyball team. Now, in this blog there was a lot of ..." we did...we were...we...we...". I don't want Christ to be lost in this blog and in this weekend. Along with the determination to win and be successful, I have to say that this "family on a mission" has been more involved in our representation and sharing of Christ than on winning volleyball matches. I truly believe that Christ was on the pedestal in our play, in our post-game interviews, and in our love for one another. Yes, we won the G-MAC title, but that was only through the power of Christ in us. As we look to our first appearance in the NCAA DII tournament, we continue to strive for God to open up new doors for us to share the gospel to those who don't know Him. That is, and always will be our ultimate goal. As I wrap up, I want to share with you again our team verse...

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified."

Thanks for reading! Have a blessed week. Happy Thanksgiving! See you all at the NCAA tournament! :)

With Love, Taylor & THE WHOLE CEDARVILLE VOLLEYBALL TEAM
 


November 14, 2016

This past weekend concluded our regular season play. As the season begins to climax, I can't help but wonder what God wanted out of this team for this season. I wonder what kind of impacts we made on people we came in contact with. I wish I could see hearts change right before my eyes and I would like to think that dozens came to Christ this season. I realize though, that if in the course of our season, we brought only one person one step closer in the process of knowing Christ as their Savior, then we were successful in God's eyes.

God called this team together for one main purpose. We were called to emulate the love and joy of Christ through our actions and words. Our team mindset as we head into the post season this week is to keep our thoughts surrounding the call God has for us. We want every conversation we have with other teams to be intentional. We want to work as hard and as smart as we can in all aspects of the game so that we can be successful and make it to a stage where Cedarville Volleyball has never been before. We want to expose ourselves to this stage not for our own glory, but so that Christ can be glorified through us. Yes of course we would love to be the first team in Cedarville history to make it to the first round of the NCAA DII tournament and be remembered for that, but truly we want to be remembered for our impact in the kingdom. Our impact on the culture of this campus and of the volleyball world can be great if we keep it in perspective.

This week we will compete in the G-MAC Tournament in Mason, OH. As we work hard through this week to prepare physically and mentally, please keep this team in your prayers. First, that we keep our mindset consistent with God's will. Second, that we stay safe and healthy as we travel and play. And lastly, that we could be filled with the hope that Christ gives as we play other teams in the G-MAC. What a great opportunity to continue to show why this team even exists and why we are so confident in our Savior!

Recently, I have been in love with the song "Elohim" by Hillsong Worship... It perfectly depicts who God is and what we try to proclaim to the world! Enjoy the lyrics! (Look it up, it's much better with music!!)

Have a Fantastic Week!

November 7, 2016

First, I'd like to say THANK YOU to Abby Shelton for filling in last week here on the blog!! Abby has such a sincere heart for the Lord and I thank God for letting me spend two short years with her and the other seniors. (Rachel, Kristin, and Angela...I love you too!) Thanks again Abby!

If you have not heard, the team this weekend CLINCHED the regular season G-MAC title by defeating the last of our G-MAC opponents; Davis & Elkins and Alderson Broaddus. This week has been pretty awesome! We started off with a great win at Ohio Valley University on Tuesday (11/1) rolling us into the weekend in West Virginia that ended with our final two wins. That puts the team at 22-7 and at a six-match winning streak! The team and coach are feeling happy about the finale of the regular G-MAC season.

Before I get ahead of myself, I don't want to forget to mention a bit about our crazy West Virginia adventure. The plan was to leave campus Friday (11/4) at 11:30 a.m. The jerseys and shoes were all packed up and ready to go. Shortly for us to find out that the bus had a fuel leak...Not really sure what to think of that expect that I am happy we didn't find out the bus had a fuel leak once we started traveling! Anyway, with a little running around by coach and a lot of laying around by the team, we ended up leaving campus at 12:50 p.m. in one 12 passenger van and one mini-van. I had the pleasure of riding in the mini-van captained by Coach Walter's himself! Team bonding (however you want to define that) definitely occurred in our van!!

The team rolled into Davis & Elkins College at about 6 p.m. The match was moved to 8 p.m. and we were so ready to be out of the vans! We were also graced with the presence of the Cedarville men's soccer team at our match! It just so happened that they were at Davis & Elkins competing in the G-MAC conference tournament. They all came to the match and cheered and supported us! It was pretty cool, the team felt so much more at home. We performed well and had fun doing it. So thanks to the soccer team for showin' the love!

The next morning, we traveled the short 45-minute trip to Alderson Broaddus for our match at 4 p.m. Traveling the beautiful scenic route in the mountains made my heart so happy and grateful to be able to travel to some awesome places that simply proclaim that God is the ultimate and glorious creator. The team was tired, but still in high spirits to be able to compete in our last G-MAC match of the year. The match itself was well played, minus the second set, yet we continued to battle and confidently take the regular season champion title!

As we go into the last regular season week, I think the team continues to show fervor for the game and for continuing to push on until the end. We are tired and worn, but we continue to find strength in the Lord, through each other, and through the love of the game. I personally, am so ready to compete at a high level for the rest of the season.

The first opportunity to do just that is Tuesday (11/8). We play the University of Findlay for the second time this year, now at their place. With our win over them in our home opener at the beginning of the year, I'm sure they are hungry to take us down. In the one practice we get before the match, the team is going to work hard to prepare well for them! It's a huge regional match as we push towards post season and I'm ready to take them on! I hope you follow and cheer us on to a WIN! I can't wait for another busy and exciting week with my sisters on this team.

Thanks for reading, see you next week.

I pray that the Lord continues to bless you and grant you peace in this busy time of the year! Never take your eyes off Him! He is our rock!

Psalm 78:35 - "And they remembered that God was their rock, And the Most High God their Redeemer."


October 31, 2016

(Ed. Note: Guest BLOGGER this week is senior Abby Shelton)

About 50 minutes until game time in Callan, Rachel and I always make the climb up (and trust me it turns into quite the climb) to the very top corner of the bleachers where we can look out and see the whole gym. Rach and I have prayed up there together before every home game since freshman year. The past couple years though that spot has turned into a kind of safe place for us. We sit up and talk about what God is teaching us, what we are struggling through that day, things that are weighing heavy on our hearts, we celebrate what God has done and praise Him for answered prayers...It's a really precious time to sit, take a deep breathe, be with my sister and reflect on how incredible God is despite the worldly circumstance we may be walking through.

All that to set the stage to say, this past Friday as we were sitting in our spot Rach asked me the question: "Who are we to get to be a part of this?"

Wow. What a question, right? It hit me real hard. Who am I to get to come to Cedarville University? To be a part of such an incredible team of Godly women that are absolutely in love with Jesus? To have such a loving and welcoming family? To be able to look into a crowd of people who are just pumped to be watching volleyball and celebrating with us?

I sat humbled (and in tears which isn't a surprise if you know me). What a good Father we have. Like really REALLY good. He just loves His kids. Would I be blessed without all of this? Of course I would be because I would still have Him. But my goodness, I have just been basking in His love these past few days, celebrating all that He has done within the hearts of Kris, Rach, Ang and I, reminiscing in memory after memory and enjoying all the time we have left here.

So...Who am I? I am a daughter of the King with an extremely grateful heart to be surrounded by the family and community that I am, to have gained three of the most incredible best friends, to play the sport of volleyball and to be on a mission for the Kingdom with my Father.


October 24, 2016

Another busy week is under our belts. It's crazy how far we've come in this seemingly short few months. Since August we have put in so many hours of practice, travel, and play. This season has had highs and lows as does any season. This season has had wins and losses just as any normal season. But this season will always be unique and special unlike any other team's season. Other teams won't have the conversations we have. They won't have the exact fellowship we have. And they won't have the same inside jokes as this team does.

God has hand-picked this team to be right where we are today. Each member of this team is here for a reason and we are so thankful for each other. The Lord has a plan for this team and we are striving every day to see that plan. We took some time this past Saturday to share what God has been teaching us and the power in that is amazing. We also took time to remember what our main goal is. That is to further God's kingdom through volleyball. We all have that thought in the back of our heads but bringing it up again as we think towards the post season tournament made us redirect our focus on an eternal perspective.

Through a great win (Tiffin on 10/18) and tough loss (Indiana Wesleyan 10/21) we are seeking to see God's hand in all. We also look towards an intense week of competition with confidence in Christ because we know that in the end His will, will be done. In the bittersweet last home games of the season, we are dwelling in this truth.

Friends, please be praying that we will glorify the Lord and do His will this week in all that we do. That we keep Him the main focus.

Thanks for being a faithful follower of Cedarville Volleyball. God bless!

In Him, for Him.


October 17, 2016

Hello Everyone!

What a fantastic weekend of volleyball, family, fellowship! We had the awesome opportunity to travel to Illinois this past weekend to play in the Midwest Region Crossover tournament (just outside of Chicago.) We left campus on Thursday (10/13) and arrived at our hotel before we headed to the facility to practice for an hour. Our practice was great and well-needed after a long day on the bus! After practice, we loaded back on to the bus for a quick hour trip to the Pratt residence for a wonderful evening of food, some games, and a movie!

The trip to the Pratt's house last year was one our favorite team memories, and I'm certain this year's trip will make that list yet again. We indulged ourselves in so much yummy home cooking that we rarely get during the volleyball season, and were even blessed by Mrs. Pratt with ice cream and homemade apple crisp! After dinner, we played our favorite game of "get into a group of four people and pick a sound to call the other team members so that you can pick out the most candy that was hidden around the house" ... (yes that's the name of the game because there is no name!!) Anyway...would like to say the sophomores and Lauren (our student trainer) took home the win with that one!

The second game was blind drawing. We each got paper and were told to draw certain things such as trains, planes, and yes...Coach Walter's himself! We even gifted him with all 15 of our very awful drawings. If he doesn't display them in his office I will be quite offended...All in all, the family and fellowship was much needed! Shout out to the Pratt's for hosting and feeding all of us! Once our tummy's were full, we headed back to the hotel to get some sleep for our first Midwest Crossover match against Michigan Tech on Friday (10/14).

I think the food and the rest did us well because we left the gym with a great win! The final scores were 19-25, 25-21, 25-17, 25-20. Abby Shelton recorded a season high of 19 kills in the match and Gabby Olson with the next highest at 11. We were very pleased with the win and were happy that our offensive and defensive aggression that we have been working on helped lead us to our first crossover victory.

Day 2 of the crossover brought even tougher opponents who we were eager to compete against. Our first match of the day was Saginaw Valley. Physically we were prepared, but mentally we may have not taken this game as serious as we should have. Saginaw was on top of their game and we were not. We had many sparks of greatness throughout the whole match but were never able to overcome Saginaw's scrappy defense. The final scores were 14-25, 15-25, 23-25. Even more unfortunate than the loss, was Abby Woodard's slight knee injury the last point of the game. We are not completely sure of what injury she may have but we know that we will support her in hopefully the quick road to recovery! Please be praying for her!

Finally, we needed to face our toughest opponent of the tournament. Number 1-seeded Wayne State. Going into this match we knew we had nothing to lose, and that's how we played. Even with the loss and the final score being 23-25, 21-25, 25-21, 22-25, we pushed the top team in the region to a limit that we think maybe we should always be playing at. We hope to use this close loss to learn for the next top team we play. Going 1-2 at this tournament was not our goal, but I think we proved that Cedarville Volleyball won't be going away any time soon.

Our next match is Tuesday (10/18) in the Callan Athletic Center against Tiffin University (2-1 at the Midwest Crossover tournament), another Midwest Region team. We are hungry to play more volleyball, which is a good sign as the season is coming to a close sooner than we think. We are thankful for the opportunities the Lord gives us, and are thankful for the ones we know He will give us in the future.

Until next week,

I Thessalonians 5:18 "Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."


October 10, 2016

Ah, fall weather has finally come! This is my favorite time of the year! I love seeing the incredible Cedarville sunsets combined with the changing colors of the leaves. It's absolutely beautiful! The Lord has blessed this campus immensely in that way. This past weekend, I sat at a Cedarville soccer game in absolute awe of God's glory, not only in the sunset that I was staring at, but also in the joy of seeing His children using their talents in competition for His glory. My team was a part of that and I was humbled at the joy He has brought me in that. All creation is declaring His name; we need only be observant of it.

Job 12:7-10 "But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind."

This past week, my team played at a very high level which rewarded us with three G-MAC wins. We are very happy with that outcome. With a little break in game play until this weekend, we are preparing and resting well yet again. We play this weekend at the Midwest Crossover Tournament in Aurora, Illinois. This tournament is huge for us. We need to compete well and win some games so that we can advance in our journey for an at-large bid for the NCAA tournament in November. Today, (Sunday 10/9) our opponents were announced. We face Michigan Tech on Friday, Saginaw Valley State on Saturday, and Wayne State on Saturday. All of those teams are strong regional opponents. We can't wait for the week of practice to start so we can prepare for an exciting weekend.

Thanks again for following the Cedarville volleyball team! We are blessed by all who believe in what we stand for and what we play for! Have a fantastic week!

#desiretheprize


October 3, 2016

This past week was another jam-packed week for the Lady Jacket volleyball team (when don't I say that?!). Three matches a week (2-1), really takes it out of you, if you can imagine. We also ended the week with a 33-hour trip to Kentucky Wesleyan and Trevecca Nazarene, in which we spent about 10 of that driving! Phew! Needless to say we are thankful for the wonderful new Cedarville buses, 2 Wi-Fi box connectors so all of us could get homework done, and special treats to keep our stomachs happy courtesy of the Cardwell's (Kristin Cardwell's parents).

It was a full weekend for sure, but we didn't come out with the two wins that we were hoping for. We were able to come out with a win against KWC in three sets which gave us some confidence back after a tough loss to Northern Michigan the week before. The KWC match was positive for us. We were able to serve aggressively and move the ball a lot around the front row because our serve receive was doing their job well! It was a really fun match in front of a great KWC crowd. Even better, every single person on our roster made an appearance in the match! That doesn't happen very often, so the team felt happy and relieved we could all contribute to our first G-MAC win of the year.

After the game, we quickly packed up and went to get some food at Penn Station before we drove another hour to Bowling Green, Kentucky for the night. Sadly, we had a pretty terrible experience getting our food! We waited about an hour for our subs we ordered. I was proud of the team for staying patient even though it's tough to wait for food, especially with this team! We love to eat! Anyway, we finally got our food and headed to the hotel where we crashed to get some rest for our second G-MAC contest of the year against Trevecca.

We all were well rested Saturday morning. We also had our weekly team devotions and team scouting session at the hotel before we left for another hour drive to our match (I'm telling you the driving is endless!) Team devotions is one of my favorite times of the week. Even though we basically live life together, sometimes it's hard to find time to sit and listen to each other in our struggles and in what the Lord is teaching us. I was very full of joy and contentment just listening to my team share, learn, and pray together.

Soon we arrived at Trevecca Nazarene in beautiful Nashville, Tennessee. As a team, we were pretty pumped and focused to play this team which knocked us out of a trip to the NCAA tournament last year. As the match got underway we really struggled in many areas. We still were not going to give up even when we were down 2 sets to 0. That's one thing this team has that other teams I've been on didn't have. Fight and endurance. Even though it looked dim, we pushed the improved Trevecca team to their limits in the third set to end up losing the set and the match 28-26 and 3-0. Not really the way we imagined this game going. Unfortunately, you can't change the score after it's over and now it's time to go back to work this week and wipe away all of our frustrations with that game.

With another three-game week ahead (all G-MAC contests), we must come together even stronger and better. After the Trevecca match we prayed together for this purpose and to make sure that we as a team keep the main thing, that is Christ, the main thing. That's what we are all about. This week we remember our team verse.

I Corinthians 9:24-25

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.

Have a blessed fall week!


September 26, 2016

Hello friends,

The team is enjoying a much needed day of rest today (Sunday), and I am happy to say that even though this past week for the team was jam-packed, we came out with some great things to take away.

First of all, we came out with one of the biggest wins in Cedarville volleyball history as we took down the University of Findlay at our home opener on Tuesday with a crowd of 1,047 cheering us on every step of the match. The final scores were 23-25, 25-21, 25-14, 25-23. This match will help us tremendously as we look toward tournament play at the end of the season.

After the emotional and physical drain of Tuesday night, we looked forward to another huge match again in the Callan Athletic Center against one of the region's top teams, Northern Michigan University. We had one day to prepare and that might have been a reason for the final score. NMU overpowered us with a final score of 26-24, 25-22, 25-13. The first loss in Callan in two years. Although this on the outside may seem like a devastating loss, I truly think this team didn't deserve, but needed this loss to learn so much more about how to prepare for matches (mentally and physically), and to remind us that we can't get too high and mighty about ourselves. It truly is amazing how hard this team came out and worked in practice the following two days. We saw our mistakes and have been diligently working on them every second we get.

We are looking forward to three matches this week. The University of Charleston (away) on Tuesday the 27th, and a road trip to Kentucky Wesleyan and Trevecca Nazarene on Friday the 30th and Saturday, October 1st respectively. We look to start out the G-MAC strong against some of our toughest opponents!

Thank you for following my beloved team! We thank you for your support and we ask this week to pray for health and healing as some of us are recovering from sickness! Thank you again,

In Him,


September 19, 2016

Hello again,

I hope all of you faithful Cedarville Volleyball followers had an enjoyable weekend! I know our team sure did. After the past two weekends of traveling and playing, we had a weekend off! Coach Walters graciously granted us all of Saturday and Sunday to rest, relax, and recharge. I had the opportunity to head over to a teammates house about an hour away from Cedarville and we enjoyed a peaceful weekend of sleeping in, cranking out some homework, and watching The Jungle Book. Here are some other ways my team got to relax this weekend...

- camping trip to admire God's creation

- family visits (including great food I'm sure)

- movie watching

Now that we are all back on campus, we have something big on our minds...THE HOME OPENER! Woo! We are all super pumped to finally get to play at home! Coach and the athletic department have been promoting this big time and we can't wait to see our loyal fans for the first time this season! The match is Tuesday (September 20) and we play the University of Findlay. This game is going to be a battle. Findlay (6-3), a tough opponent in the past, will surely be prepared to take us on even in our intimidating home environment. Our great 8-2 start to the season isn't going to win the game for us. We are super focused in on this match and have one more practice on Monday to go through our game plan and prepare! Hope to see you all at the game! Don't forget it's FREE t-shirt night for the first 1,000 fans!

FOR HIM, WITH HIM

And he said, "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." Exodus 33:14


September 12, 2016

Hello friends!

The team is now, as a write, en route back to Cedarville in the new Cedarville athletic bus which we had the opportunity to use for the first time this weekend! We are absolutely loving the space we have (not to mention the high class style were traveling in!), everyone is blessed to have their own row, and we are definitely making ourselves comfortable...Krissy Pratt is currently sprawled out on the ground and will be for the rest of the trip I'm sure. The rest is well deserved though, we had quite the weekend.

We left campus at 10 a.m. on Thursday and arrived in Quincy, Illinois around 5 p.m. where we immediately went out for dinner at a pretty cool place called, Chicks on the River. We enjoyed a variety of meals this weekend but I have to say this Chicks place was the most unique. Many of us ordered what they called Lips (basically huge chunks of chicken.) You could imagine the fun we had with that name! In total, we probably ate way too much food this weekend but we'd like to think that's what helped us go 4-0...let me just say that again, 4-0!!! Actually, we didn't even drop a set this weekend...we went 12-0!

We started the weekend off with a pretty big win against Columbus State out of Georgia. It was a morning game and we really came together to start the day and the weekend off strong. We stuck to our game plan and executed well in all aspects of the game. We then had a little lunch break and got to relax at the hotel before we headed back to the gym to prepare for Maryville, a strong GLVC team. This game was pretty phenomenal for us, our offense and transition game was on fire, and our serve receive was continuing to gain momentum and consistency each set we played. This carried on into Saturday's matches against Quincy and Culver-Stockton.

Our morning match on Saturday was against Quincy, the toughest match of the weekend, another GLVC team. And what an incredible match it was. We overcame the morning slow starts and controlled most of the match, even though all three sets were neck and neck to the finish. We followed our game plan, trusted each other on the court, and were so determined and focused to finished every game and that's exactly what we did. I could not be more proud of how this team took on a challenge and fought to the very end. Our last match of the weekend, against Culver-Stockton (NAIA) was so fun. We had the opportunity to get a great start and get ALL of our players out on the court! Every single girl on this team got to enjoy the joy of contributing to an amazing 4-0 weekend. It was a very special thing.

Something more special occurred this weekend though. As most of you know, we have the opportunity to write notes, give out Bibles, and pray with our opponents after our matches. This weekend we got some awesome responses. A few of our girls that we talked to, texted us back saying thank you for our notes and time of prayer. A few other coaches and staff of the tournament noted that our team had something different about us. That is what we do all of this for. For just a single person to ask why we give Bibles or take the time to write notes. If we, as a team, are able to show Christ's character and love in how we play and how we carry ourselves, then we consider that a successful weekend. Yes, we enjoy the wins and the 4-0 fro-yo coach took us out for after dinner on Saturday, but we bask in the joy that maybe we took someone's heart one step closer to knowing the Lord of all the earth. We sit in awe that God gave us these talents and abilities as an avenue to get to talk to so many different people in different situations than we are, but have fallen in love with the sport we have. We continue to pray that the impact is eternal in all who we come in contact with. Praise the Lord for his ways are miraculous and GOOD!

Cedarville Volleyball is happy and thankful for this second weekend of the season! We can't wait to get back to campus to rest up for our next match at University of Indianapolis on Tuesday! Thanks for reading!


September 5, 2016

Hello again!

It has been just a few days from the last time you heard from me but BIG things have happened in that time span! For starters we successfully made it through our first weekend of the season. However, not only did we make it, the team came out with two huge wins over Clarion University (in three sets) and Lake Erie College (in five sets) on Saturday after a couple of heart breaking losses against Gannon University (in five sets) and Hillsdale College (in four sets). The weekend showed that this team is going to be different. This team has already fought and won tough battles in the opening weekend that are hard to overcome even in the last parts of a season. It was an awesome start to the season! Oh, and we also ate at some great restaurants, danced on the bus, and even got to celebrate Coach on his birthday!

Even though the wins were such a success, I want to mention something of greater importance I noticed this weekend. This team...this family... can love well. You'll be hard pressed to find a time on the court when there isn't a word of encouragement to be shared, a smile to pass on, or a reassuring pat on the back. This team has extended the word "team" to family even in the few weeks we've spent together and I cannot wait to see what God has in store for us as we continue on this journey He has put us on this season. We don't know what that will look like, but we are ready to TRUST each other along the way.

Lastly, as we embark on a new week, I ask that you may take the time to pray for this team as we look toward another four-match weekend away. Please pray for us to first, travel safely and second, to be able to get our schoolwork done efficiently and on time when we are away!

Thanks for reading! See you next week!


September 1, 2016

Hello all faithful Cedarville volleyball blog followers! My name is Taylor Wilkerson and I'm a sophomore right side hitter this year hailing from the great state of Wisconsin! I'm so blessed to get to key you all into a little bit of what life is like on the Cedarville University volleyball team.

If you ever want to catch up on some live game stats or see some team pictures, feel free to follow some of our social media accounts run by our coach and our student assistants...

Instagram: @cedarvillevball
Twitter: @cedarvillevball
Facebook: Cedarville University Volleyball
Periscope: @cedarvillevball

...and additionally Cedarville broadcasts all of our home matches off their website (how cool?!) so be sure to check up on the game schedule on the Cedarville Athletics webpage to finds those times!

The team is VERY excited to get the regular season going. We had a rigorous pre-season which consisted of three days of 3-a-day practices. So needless to say, we we're pretty excited to start classes and have only one practice a day...sorry Coach Walters...it's true! Anyway, we are now only a day away from leaving for our opening weekend at Clarion University where we will face Gannon, Hillsdale, Clarion and Lake Erie. We are ready to take the court yet again for another amazing season. We want to love each other well, compete with excellence, but most importantly we want to glorify our Creator and Lord Jesus Christ whom we do all of this for! Stay tuned to watch this awesome group of women do just that.

#desiretheprize

#forhim

Taylor Wilkerson


Taylor Wilkerson is a sophomore outside hitter from Brookfield, Wis. and is majoring in early childhood education.