Jan. 19, 2006

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern freshman Chelsy Hyser (Belvidere, Ill./Belvidere) was one of 68 attendees and 22 middle blockers at the USA Volleyball open tryout Jan. 13-15 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The first day of the tryout involved general testing including vertical ability and a shuttle run before the National Team coach, "Jenny" Lang Ping, spoke with the group about the national program. Training sessions followed on Saturday and Sunday.

"This was a good experience for me to play against high-caliber athletes," Hyser said. "I was exposed to the serious dedication and commitment needed to excel at the next level and it helped me grow as an individual."

Hyser joined seven other Big Ten student-athletes at the tryout: Ohio State's Marisa Main and Ami Stevens; Minnesota's Jessy Jones and Meredith Nelson; Wisconsin's Audra Jeffers and Jackie Simpson and Indiana's Erica Short.

"I met people from all over the United States and became friends with a lot of girls from the conference," Hyser said.