My Gold Medal Journey

Coach John Cook always said Nebraska knows how to shape Olympians.

I never in a million years thought I'd be one of them, but there I was on that podium receiving a gold medal alongside the rest of Team USA at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Life is crazy, you know?

A few years ago, I was getting cut from teams and unsure if I wanted to continue playing volleyball on the national stage. Yet, a few years later, I reached the pinnacle of the sport.

The gold medal is a symbol of all your hard work and dedication. It's what makes the magazines and posters, right? But do you want to know what made me the proudest?

It was the journey.

There were so many chances for me to turn around and find a new dream, but I guess I was too stubborn to quit. Even though my mind was full of doubts, I just kept pressing on in hopes that one day I'd get my big break.

That moment came the day I said yes to Nebraska.

Back to the Drawing Board

First and foremost, Nebraska volleyball is all about family.

Words can't even describe how important that was for a homesick California girl. That was really the first time I'd ever been so far away from my family for an extended period of time.

I was kind of in my own little bubble back home in California, and I didn't really venture out until I arrived in Lincoln. But things quickly changed once I got acquainted with my new surroundings and met all of my teammates.

That's when everything started to grow on me—the school, the team, and the competition at the Division I level.

But most importantly, I was growing, too.

There's no straight path to the Olympics. You kind of have to find your own lane. When looking back, I'm always blown away by the transformation I made as a person and a player from my freshman to senior year.

Key to this transformation was definitely self-belief. 

That's one of my biggest takeaways from Coach Cook that carried me through my time with the national team and the Olympics. You have to really believe in yourself and your ability to reach that next level.

It sounds so simple on the surface, but it isn't easy. It never was. It never is.

Believe it or not, I struggled so much in that aspect. But I wouldn't be the same player without those struggles. I wouldn't even be the same person. Everything kind of translates from what you go through both on and off the court.

I know the Husker fans remember that incredible 2015 season, for example.

Most remember us celebrating on the floor after sweeping Texas and winning our fourth national title.

But I remember us getting swept by BYU at the Regionals in the previous season. This moment made us rethink our goals and what we aspired to do as a program.

We went back to the drawing board and returned stronger because of it. 

So yes, winning the national title was great, but it was the journey that humbled me.

And it all started with me and my teammates believing in ourselves.

I Am an Olympian

That lesson from the 2014 season is something I carried with me when competing on the national scene after college. People told me 'no' so many times, and I can't even count the doors that were closed in my face.

But each and every time, I would go back and try to create new opportunities for myself.

One of those opportunities came overseas in Germany for a professional volleyball contract. If you thought I was homesick moving from California to Nebraska, imagine how I felt going to a completely different country. Well, continent, even. 

I obviously don't speak German, and I wasn't really familiar with the culture. Even simple things, like finding something I wanted to eat from back home was a journey all in itself. You're just navigating through this different part of the world and trying to make that new home for yourself.

But no matter where I went in the world, volleyball always brought a sense of community. It's one of the things I love most about the sport.

During my transition as a professional player, I was so much more confident than I'd ever been. My playing time was increasing, and with the group being smaller, I was receiving more attention on the court.

I remember starting the first three games for the team in the Volleyball Nations League, and during a one-on-one meeting with my coach, I was told I had a really good shot at making the Tokyo roster. 

I mean, how do you not freak out when receiving that kind of news?

Athletes all around the world dream their whole lives about representing their country and competing in the Olympics. And there I was, thinking this could possibly be me. I was ecstatic.

But I stuffed those emotions down and kept focusing on my day-to-day. I just needed to stay the course until the official word came.

And nothing could have prepared me for the moment when it finally did. 

Just a wave of emotions came over me as I sat there thinking about everything I've endured the last five years—the endless grind, the defeats, the victories. 

All of it was for this moment.