It’s more than setting and spiking a ball. It's about teamwork and camaraderie.
That’s how senior Laura Shoopman describes her volleyball experience.
As Shoopman’s Belmont career comes to a close, she’s taking a contemplative look at her three years.
“Volleyball is much bigger than just volleyball. It’s about having each other’s backs, it’s about teamwork. It’s about all of these different things than just the sport, the sport is just what brought us together to go through life,” Shoopman said.
When Shoopman, who spent one season at Oral Roberts University, came to Belmont, she had a powerful arm, to make big kills but lacked control.
After working with head coach Katelyn Harrison and the rest of the staff, Shoopman used that power to her advantage and made her plays more distinct.
Since then, she has shone under the bright lights of the curb event center.
Shoopman recently hit 1,000 career kills in the Kathy DeBoer Invitational last weekend where the team beat Power Five school Syracuse University, the Bruins’ first Power Five win since 2014.
Shoopman led the Bruins with 13 kills and nine digs.
Although her reputation precedes her, Shoopman finds appreciation in not only the sport, but her teammates as well.
“I hope that I can be a great teammate on and off the court this season and help whoever’s on the court excel and thrive. I hope that I can be someone they can turn to when they need advice or help with the game or with life,” Shoopman said. “That’s how I want to be remembered is that I cared for them no matter what.”
And Harrison said she believes Laura has done just that.
“Laura has always been a great leader for us, and I think that’s what sets her apart in her ability to connect with her teammates and to empathize with them and have conversations to really get to know them,” Harrison said.
But for now, the focus is still on racking up points and setting up kills.
“We want to be a force to be reckoned with, we want to show up in battle with the teams across the net. We don’t want people to overlook us and we want to be a constant competitor within this conference,” Shoopman said.
With regular season play approaching, the team is already in a good place with all six seniors in its starting lineup.
“I think our depth is our biggest strength and you can also argue it as a weakness because we have so many people ready to play,” Harrison said.
With the first set of home games approaching this Friday and Saturday for the Belmont/TSU Tournament, the first game of the regular season will kick off against Indiana State University in the Curb Event Center on September 22.
From there, Shoopman said that the road to the MVC championship begins.
“We want to be a force to be reckoned with, we want to show up in battle with the teams across the net,” Shoopman said. “We don’t want people to overlook us and we want to be a constant competitor within this conference.”
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This article was written by Cat Da Rocha
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