FHU Assistant Coach Cheri Erickson Wins National Volleyball Championship

Lady Lion assistant coach Cheri Erickson, who played at FHU from 2001-2004, was part of the Willowbrook Stars team that won the USA Volleyball Open Adult Gold Division Championship on May 31 in Atlanta, Ga.

Erickson's involvement with the team happened almost coincidentally as she heard about it through a former Union (Tenn.) University player, Phylis Anyango, with whom Erickson coaches the Jackson Juniors 18U and 16U club teams. Helen Ekadeli, an assistant coach at the University of Houston, had been a member of the Stars for the last several years and invited Anyango, a former teammate in their native Kenya, to play with them in Atlanta.

Anyango immediately told her about Erickson, and Ekadeli said to bring her along, too. The remaining members of the team all came from NCAA Division I schools with five having played for the University of Florida, a perennial SEC and national power. Playing with athletes from such prestigious programs was something that Erickson said was challenging at first.

"I was pretty nervous to start. I only knew one person on the team and was one of two NAIA players," she said. "So I almost felt like I had something to prove."

"It was different, but nice playing with the girls on the team. They expected so much from everyone, and no stupid mistakes. They weren't afraid to get on each other, and there weren't any hurt feelings."

The distances that separated the players made it impossible for them to get together before meeting up in Atlanta on the week of the tournament.

"That is the amazing thing," Erickson said. "We had never all played together, not even practiced, until the very first game. No one knew what to expect."

As it turned out, the players meshed quickly and lost just one match en route to the tournament title, dropping both games to Wasabi during pool play. The Stars would later avenge their only loss by eliminating Wasabi in the bracket semifinals.

Erickson, who played setter in college, also had to adjust to the new role of defensive specialist.

"[It] was somewhat difficult," she said. "As a setter you have to read where the ball is going. The first few games I had to stop myself from running to the net, or trying to set the second ball. I had to read the hitters and our blockers a lot more than I was used to, because I was going to be the one passing."

"My job was to pick up all the tips too, so I had to be ready to hit the floor at all times. The difference in moving a few inches one way or another can be the difference between a kill or dig."

Next year's championship will be held in Minnesota, and Erickson plans to return if the opportunity again presents itself.

"The experience was great," she said. "I have always known that I miss playing, but I didn't know how much. After four straight days, I wanted to play even more."