With one week of practice in the books for Cowgirl volleyball, Lily Austin is the final of the Wyoming volleyball senior spotlight series for GoWyo.com. Austin, a native of Boise, Idaho, enters her final season having played in all 92 matches during her first three seasons. She was third on the team a year ago with 249 digs (2.26 dps) while making nine starts. Additionally, Austin was the lone Cowgirl to earn All-Tournament Team honors at the Purdue Mortar Board Premier last season. 

I would tell myself to enjoy each moment. When I started collegiate volleyball I was constantly stressed about trying to manage every new responsibility. I was focused on finishing each task just so that I could check it off of my to-do list. Now that I am heading into my senior year I realize that each practice, game, and memory with my team is limited. I want to be mindful about being in the moment for every experience that I have to get the most out of my last season.

There are hundreds of memories that I have made that have meant so much to me during my career at Wyoming. My first favorite memory is when we hosted New Mexico during my sophomore year and I had to play front row. I was playing backrow for Bridget Shanahan that match when my team ran out of substitutions. The game was pretty tight, stress was running high, and I had to be ready to try to block and hit against some amazing athletes. Luckily Kayla Slofkiss had a great serve and I did not have to attack any balls, but the adrenaline that I got from standing in the front row was unforgettable! My other favorite memory is more of a collection that I have built up. My teammates have been my best friends in college. There have been countless dinner parties, game nights, workouts, phone calls, late night conversations, bus drives, and many more moments that I would not have wanted to share with any other people. These are the memories I will hold onto when I think back on my career at Wyoming. 

I think that volleyball will help me in many ways in my life after college. While at Wyoming I have learned about nutrition, health and wellness, and exercise. I am excited to maintain what I have learned once I am on my own. While being a student-athlete, you learn how to manage your time, how to handle stress as well as how to be accountable to a community of people that are counting on your performance. I think this will be appealing to future employers. The friends that I have made during my time here I know will be lifelong friends. I cannot wait to see how successful each of my teammates are. They are some of the most incredible, intelligent women that I have met! 

Growing up, my family was huge collegiate sport fans and so I was always in awe of the athletes that were able to compete at this level. My mom’s entire family lived in Wyoming and I was curious to see what the University had to offer. When I came on my official visit, I immediately fell in love with everything this campus had to offer. The people in the state are so friendly and genuinely care about you. The team was so inviting and I felt like I fit in with them. The other athletes on different athletics teams support each other and are friends even when outside of the training facilities. Academics is taken seriously by coaches, professors, and students and the facilities rank as some of the best nationwide. Overall, Wyoming felt like it was a perfect fit for me. I am thankful every day that I was allowed to be a student-athlete at the University of Wyoming! 

I cannot believe it is already my senior year! I remember thinking during my freshman preseason four years seemed never ending because my muscles were sore in places I did not know existed! Once I got in the swing of things, every season has seemed to go by faster and faster. It is weird to think that I am one of the oldest on the team now but I am excited to see the younger girls earn new roles on the team this season. There is a lot of talent on the team this year and I cannot wait for the crowd to be able to see what we have been working on! I hope that we are able to build on the success from the past several seasons and become even stronger for this upcoming fall.  

Two exhibition matches will mark the end of the second week of practices for UW. Wyoming will travel to Greeley, Colo., to face Northern Colorado on Friday night at 6 p.m. MT, before the annual Brown and Gold Scrimmage at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday in the UniWyo Sports Complex. The 46th season for Wyoming volleyball will begin with hosting Abilene Christian, South Dakota and Portland for the Rumble in the Rockies tournament on Aug. 25-26.