The Augustana Observer sat down with sophomore volleyball player Taryn VanEarwage to talk about her time with the volleyball team and her goals.
1. What are some team and personal goals you have for this season?
“As a team, we set pretty high goals like winning the national championship. I think that should be every team’s goal. But right now, we are taking it game by game and not trying to get to ahead of ourselves. We are just focusing on each game and trying to get better.”
2. What do you feel like you learned during your first year on the team?
“Going into my first year it was kind of nerve-wracking just because it’s scary for any freshman to go in.  It was nice having my team there to support me and, if I needed help, they were always there. (My teammates) were the first people I knew coming into school here because I worked out with them over the summer. It was really nice knowing people coming into college and not having to go through it alone.”
3. What is your favorite  volleyball memory so far?
“Just the relationships I’ve built with (my team). We are all just so close and it’s nice having my volleyball team as my friends.”
4. What do you hope to accomplish as an athlete over the next three years?
“I hope to continue to get better and improve in every aspect of my game because there is always room for improvement. Also, win a conference championship and make it to the NCAA (Division III) tournament. I think those are pretty big goals, but they are also very reachable.”
5. You guys recently went 4-0 at the Viking Classic and you also had the team high of 12 digs. How did these accomplishments feel?
“As a team, we were coming off a really big win against Wartburg. We beat them once last year and lost to them once last year and they are a pretty good team; so coming in we felt good. We wanted to continue to push because we are getting further and further in the season and we can’t have the ups and downs. We definitely proved ourselves that weekend.”
6. What does being on this team mean to you?
“It means a lot because I’ve had a lot of adversity over the last few years in terms of surgeries and everything. So just getting to play with this group of girls that push me to be my best is definitely something I look forward to every day. We are just a big family and it’s nice to have those people to fall back on if I need to.”