A Day in the overseas life

Sometimes you have to get far away from what you've known to really see yourself.

It can be an incredibly daunting task — even frightening for some — but there is always that wonderful possibility one might learn something truly important in  foreign surroundings, a knowledge that could steal your soul and make your convictions indestructible.

Senior Laura Day hadn't expected to be able to go abroad during her collegiate volleyball career, figuring she would eventually make her way to Europe as a professional player like her older sister Emily, who  played in Switzerland.

"I never even thought of it really, because I just never thought it was an option," Day said.

"Then my roommates went in the summer of 2010, and I thought, ‘Maybe I could do that next year.' But I never seriously considered it until the actual deadline came."

Once she became determined to make the dream a reality, Day began to sort through the necessary logistics. She consulted her parents and coaches, and despite hearing mixed signals at the start — some of the athletic staff were reticent about her missing such a sizable chunk of summer training with the team — a six-week summer trip began to take shape.

"It was my sister who finally convinced me to make that jump," Day said. "One of her biggest regrets was not having been able to go abroad when she played college volleyball, since her coaches would never have allowed it.

 "She told me that going was a no-brainer, and made me realize that I was a strong enough athlete where I would maintain the discipline to maintain my fitness once I got over there."

Head coach Steve Gantt was hesitant at first to see one of his key players leave, but it was his own experience traveling with the U.S. men's national volleyball team — coupled with that of assistant coach Allen Allen — (Gantt as an assistant coach, Allen as a player) that eventually swayed them, Day said.

"They both said they'd had amazing experiences and unforgettable adventures abroad, and they didn't want to take that away from me. They said that they trusted me, and then they were on board with the decision.

"I was so grateful. I turned in the application on the deadline day, and I was ready to go," Day said.

Yet for Day, who had never been overseas, the initial transition was far from seamless.

"I was homesick in the beginning. I had never been without my team or without a good friend before. The time difference, not having a phone, the realization that if something were to happen to me or to my family, that I couldn't be there at a second's notice since I was halfway across the world, it just piled up at first.

 "We'd had our opening tour in Rome, where we were thrown into everything right away, and I didn't work out for three days, so I was freaking out," Day said. "I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, I'm going to lose my spot on the team!' But then once we'd finally settled in Florence during that first week, I fell into my workout routine, and once I had that schedule, I thought, ‘OK, I'm busy with working out and meeting new people,' and that helped the homesickness pass."

The peripatetic daze of those first frenzied days having passed, it would be a Skype session with her older sister that finally helped Day get over that mountain of homesickness and unfamiliarity with being away from volleyball for the first extended period of time in her life.

"I remember that conversation with my sister, when she told me ‘Are you kidding me, Laura? You're in Europe, why are you moping?' It was a reality check, that this was an amazing opportunity, and from then on I tried to seize every new possibility that came my way."

With sparse accommodations in the Florence campus weight room, Day was forced to improvise for her daily training techniques, showing a beneficial reserve of resourcefulness.

"I had to get creative. When my roommates would go out exploring the city, I headed out for my workout regiment. The gym over there was pathetic, so the jump rope I'd brought over became my best friend. I also did a lot of cardio by this nearby fortress in the morning before classes, and I had to do pull-ups on this makeshift wall."

Day battled elements both natural (oppressive heat) and synthetic (cigarette smoke), the latter of which she mentioned became nearly unbearable during her runs. Still, she battled through.

"I was very strict with my eating habits, but I've always been very disciplined, so it wasn't too difficult. And I got to experience this amazing city. It was truly unforgettable."

Coming back for the 2011 season as one of three senior captains on the volleyball team, Day was a bit nervous on the flight home from Italy.

"I knew I was in shape, but since I hadn't been working out with my team all summer, I didn't know how in shape I would be compared to them. But when I got back I was right where I left off, and the coaches were very happy with how I performed right away. It was a good feeling."

Coach Gantt applauded Day for her industriousness and dedication, which have carried over to the regular season. Gantt said that upon returning, Day exhibited a sense of earnestness for this, her final season as a collegiate athlete. Her play on the court has been great as well.

"You have to measure Laura's size by her heart and not by her physical stature, because she's had to play at such a high level of efficiency her whole career," Gantt said.

"Despite not being the tallest player out there, from a technical standpoint, she's one of our best players — if not our best player. She's refined her skills to a point where she can maximize her efficiency."

Day slots in naturally as a libero, Gantt said — the player tasked with handling the majority of first-contact plays during games for the team.