Rec Hall's South Gym was filled with the familiar sound of volleyballs slamming against the hardwood floor, but among the people doing the damage were some unfamiliar faces.
The Penn State women's volleyball team is beginning its quest for a fourth consecutive national championship without All-Americans Alisha Glass and Megan Hodge -- who graduated after helping the team reel off 102 consecutive wins.
However, nine freshmen are joining the returning Lions for their attempt to continue the recent success.
With the large amount of new faces running around the gym, senior Alyssa D'Errico said there's an extra element added to practice.
"I think it's interesting, fun, [there are] new challenges every day because there's so many new faces in the gym," D'Errico said. "The best part about all of them is they want to contribute, they want to be better, they want to try and figure out any way they can to help the program be better. So it's always a fun day at practice, figuring out who's gonna be good that day and who's gonna step up to the challenge."
Coach Russ Rose said all 19 players on the roster have played with both the scout team and what could tentatively be referred to as the first team.
Though each player brings something to the court, Rose said the amount of players on the team presents a problem, and there are potentially six or seven players that could redshirt this season.
The freshmen's performances in practice have made the decision of who to play and who to redshirt a tough one for the Penn State coach.
"The problem is one day one's good and the next day somebody else is good," Rose said of the newcomers. "I think young players, you recruit them for their potential but in the end, you evaluate them in how they work with others."
Preseason practices have given Rose an opportunity to see what kind of chemistry the players have while performing drills and scrimmaging.
Junior Katie Kabbes said the returning players and freshmen are all getting along well, which helps when they need to help each other out on the court.
Kabbes -- a captain on this season's team -- said an increase in communication has been necessary at practice. The junior outside hitter said there's been a lot more talking between upperclassmen and underclassmen than in past seasons.
Freshman setter Mikinzie Moydell said inexperience has made it tough to adjust, but she's getting a lot of support from all her teammates.
Even with the newcomers adjusting to practice on the fly, D'Errico said the team isn't slowing down.
"We still train the same way, we do the same drills and we work just as hard in the gym," D'Errico said. "It's just teaching the new people how to do that. The people returning, it's the same thing that it was when we first came in. The challenge is really teaching the new players how it's done and how it's been."
