The 2017 season was a good one for Illinois volleyball.

For the Illini, “good” meant finishing sixth overall in the Big Ten – behind five teams that were ranked well into the top-20 nationally, including the eventual NCAA Champion. It meant breaking through to the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA tournament and upsetting No. 8 Washington on their home court. It also meant finishing one game above .500 at the helm of first-year head coach Chris Tamas.

The Illini are now trying to do it all again – but even better.

The offseason has been a time for Illini volleyball players to fine-tune their flaws. The team is unable to play more than two hours of organized volleyball per week and do more than six hours of conditioning during the winter. However, the Illini have been making their time in the gym count.

According to Tamas, nothing unexpected has happened in the off-season.

“We had some players that left; they decided they wanted to transfer, but that happens whenever you transition into a new coach or coaching staff,” Tamas said. “We want people to be happy and contribute. We have a great group right now, and I’m looking forward to the rest of the spring.”

Beginning in late March, the team will play four regulation games. On Friday, the team travels to Avon, Indiana — junior outside hitter Beth Prince’s hometown — to play the Kentucky Wildcats.

The introduction of a spring competition season has also meant a change in practice time. According to senior middle blocker Ali Bastianelli, at the start of the spring season, players take part in normal practices just as they would during the fall season.

“It’s just as intense as the regular season practices we would have in the fall,” Bastianelli said. “Our practices right now are really individually focused and are about each position player. We come back together at the end and play.”

Tamas said the spring season will give his players the opportunity to compete against teams they wouldn’t normally see on a fall schedule. For example, playing the Wildcats will give the Illini an opportunity to match up against an SEC opponent that finished second in its conference.

“I wanted to play good teams. We have a couple state teams we’re playing that are good in their conferences,” Tamas said.

The team is also going to tip-off on Friday nights rather than Saturday mornings, as it did in the past.

“We’re playing them on Friday nights in a game environment,” Tamas said. “On Saturday mornings, where you have a few hundred people, is very different than being in a hostile environment Friday night. I want to get the team ready for high-pressure situations.”

In addition to leading Illinois into its spring season, Tamas is also traveling to China in May. He was recently named head coach of the 12-player U.S. Women’s Collegiate National Team China Tour, which will take him overseas from May 20 to 31.

Senior setter Jordyn Poulter and sophomores Megan Cooney and Morgan O’Brien also tried out for spots on the U.S.A. Volleyball team in early March.

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