ELLENSBURG, Wash. – After attending its ninth-straight NCAA West Regional, Central Washington volleyball is preparing for an action-packed spring in preparation for the 2022 season next fall.
 
"Spring is a critical time for growth, physically and mentally," Central Washington Head Coach Mario Andaya said. "Our younger players are getting more attention and learning the urgency in development. There is more pressure on them than in the fall season, which is part of the process. Our more experienced players are more focused on building and refining the things that will raise their production."
 
CATCHING UP
The Wildcats closed out the 2021 season with a 17-9 overall record, and 12-6 mark in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play. Reaching the program's ninth-straight NCAA West Regional, the Wildcats defeated No. 24 Chaminade in the opening round 3-1. After splitting the regular season 1-1, Central fell to No. 13 Western Washington in the semifinals.
 
Only graduating two seniors, Kylee Yamashita and Leanna Shymanski, the Wildcats are now more experienced, and looking more dangerous for season ahead.
 
CWU has had a quiet off-season thus far. Shymanski, the Wildcats All-GNAC honorable mention middle blocker, has transitioned into her new role as a Graduate Assistant Coach.
 
On the flip side, Central has welcomed a new middle blocker seeking to make her mark in Abby Snethen. Snethen joins the Wildcats from Bryant University.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
In preparation for what will be an exciting fall season, Central Washington has notched two spring games against Portland State and Eastern Washington.
 
"Playing physical, fast, and highly competitive teams can help us measure our growth. Our spring opponents will do just that. It's also nice to play someone besides ourselves."
 
The Wildcats competed with both programs last fall in a pair of exhibitions to open to season.
 
At Eastern, the Wildcats captured a 3-2 victory by set scores of 27-25, 22-25, 25-14, 19-25, and 18-16.
 
Following the strong fall-opener, Central then made the trip to Portland State resulting in an unfortunate 3-0 sweep for the Vikings.
 
The Wildcats will face off against Portland State on Saturday, April 23^rd, and Eastern Washington on Saturday, April 30^th.
 
FAMILY MATTERS
Volleyball, like most sports, provides a new family and sense of purpose that is hard to find anywhere else. As the head coach for over 27 seasons, Andaya has had the unique opportunity to build a program with its own unique culture and family.
 
"Alumni day is special. It's important we connect our current and past players for many reasons, but probably the main one is for inspiration. Our alumni have been through challenges in their time here that made for lifelong memories. It's important for our current players to see and hear firsthand how impactful those experiences were for our alumni. This year we are doing a mini camp before the alumni match so it will be fun to coach them up again and relive the glory days. There will be some laughs for sure, but don't be surprised to see the competitiveness come when they step on the court. We're getting the ice bags ready."
 
On Saturday, May 7^th, Andaya is inviting many of his alumni from over the years to take part in a weekend to "relive the glory days," as Andaya puts it.
 
The alums will work out with Andaya and the team and take part in an alumni match before or after the teams intersquad match. Additional volleyball alum who are interested can contact assistant coach Lauren Herseth for additional information.
 
Central Washington's fall schedule is currently in the works, and will be releasing once it is finalized.