The ISU volleyball team kicked off its spring slate last weekend with three exhibition matches at Hilton Coliseum against Nebraska-Omaha, Nebraska-Kearny and in-state rival Northern Iowa.

It was the first time the team has been in action since it fell in the first round of the NCAA tournament last fall, but for some, it was their first taste of collegiate volleyball at Iowa State.

Four new additions to the squad made their debuts April 5, as redshirt freshmen Maria Fruechte and Samara West got their first action after sitting out their redshirt year last season.

Also debuting for the team was Monique Harris, who graduated high school a semester early to join the team during their spring slate, and Suzanne Horner, who transferred to Iowa State and enrolled mid-term after playing for Mississippi State last season.

Fruechte and West were perhaps the most anxious to finally get their chance to play collegiate volleyball after sitting out last season.

“Redshirting was really hard for me because I just wanted to play so bad, but it helped me out so much,” West said. “It definitely helped me with the pace of college volleyball.”

ISU coach Christy Johnson-Lynch said she was pleased with both of her redshirt freshmen’s performances.

“Samara [West] was pretty unstoppable offensively the first half of the day,” Johnson-Lynch said. “If you would have seen her first day of practice compared to now, she’s a different player.”

While West started off the day strong, Johnson-Lynch said Fruechte started a little bit slower, making a few errors before getting into the flow of the game. Johnson-Lynch also mentioned that nerves were probably a factor for the athletes who were making their debuts at Cyclones.

“Maria [Fruechte] started off the day kind of rough, but she learned and she got a lot better and by the end of the day, I thought she was making some really good decisions on the attack and made some nice passes,” Johnson-Lynch said.

While Fruechte and West had long waited for their first taste of college volleyball after sitting out last season, Monique Harris’ debut was a little different.

Harris was so eager to begin her college career that she graduated high school a semester early to join the Cyclones for the spring season.

“I just really thought it was a good idea to get a head start,” Harris said of the decision to enroll early. “I really wanted to get after it and get a good start on it.”

Harris, a setter and defensive specialist from Clinton, Iowa, said adjusting to the speed of college volleyball was probably the biggest challenge so far.

“It was a little shaky at first, just trying to get used to the speed, but I’m coming along,” Harris said. “That’s a part of being an athlete. You just have to adjust quickly and figure it out.”

Also debuting was Horner, a mid-term enrollee who played last season at Mississippi State. At Mississippi State, the freshman setter led the team in assists with 978, averaging 8.73 assists per set while starting 30 matches for the Bulldogs.

Horner, Harris, Fruechte and West will be joined by fellow newcomers in the fall. Alexis Conaway, Branen Berta and Rachel Manriquez will join the Cyclones for the fall campaign.