Dauphin's Renee Desroches is loving her first season as a college volleyball player, playing for the Canadian Mennonite University Blazers.
"The season's been really good, and a lot of fun," said Desroches. "There's tough competition, but we're here to compete, and it's been a great opportunity for me."
Now that Renee is playing college, she plays against girls as much as four years older than her, but the Dauphin native has found a way to fit in nicely.
"The speed is definitely a lot faster than high school," said Desroches. "But I'm fitting in well, and it's definitely great to have the chance to play the sport I love after high school."
Heading into the second half of the season, Desroches and the rest of the Blazers are 5-3 and are just one game behind the conference-leading Providence University College Pilots who are 6-2.
"We are really looking forward to the second half of the season," said Desroches. "It's going to be a great chance for our team to battle back and get some wins under our belt. We have a game coming up on Friday, so we're working hard to get prepared for it."
When asked what her favourite part of playing volleyball past high school was, Renee didn't hesitate in her answer.
"Just getting the chance to play college volleyball every day," said Desroches. "Our team is great, and the coaching staff is great. We get to play pretty much every day, and we get to travel a bit which is awesome. It's just a great opportunity for anyone who wants to play post-secondary athletics."
The team's game this Friday is a big one, as they take on the also 5-3 Red Deer Rebels as the conference schedule boots back up.