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Stacy Sykora Returns
The feel good story of the year goes to USA Volleyball's Stacy Sykora. After suffering a brain injury in a bus accident while traveling to a game with her Brazilian pro team, Sykora remained in a coma for three days. When she regained consciousness, she was determined to get back on the court as soon as possible. Just a few short months later, she got her wish. A four-time Olympian and 2008 silver medalist as the starting libero in Beiing, Sykora's injury made it difficult for her to track the ball once it began traveling toward her.
To correct the problem, Stacy has been doing vision training at a local doctor's office near the training center and has made tremendous progress in expanding her visual field. Though she has not yet competed in tournament competition with the USA team, she made her debut in an intra-squad scrimmage. Sykora hopes to grab a spot on thee 2012 team but knows she has work to do to get back to the level she was at before the accident. Just after he return to the court, I had a chance to hang out with Stacy as she worked on her vision and as she took to the court for the first time since the accident. Stacy was as energetic as ever, as determined as she ever was and overwhelmingly positive about the possibility of another chance to represent the USA in an Olympics. You can check out Stacy's vision training video and footage from her first scrimmage as well as read more about Stacy’s return to the court.
UCLA Wins First Title in 20 Years
The UCLA Bruins won the women’s title after an up and down season that ended with three losses in the team’s last five matches.
After that final loss to national No. 1 USC, the Bruins re-grouped and put together a play-off run for the ages. Along the way they steamrolled four-time national champions Penn State with a 3-0 victory, sending the Nittany Lions home before the Final Four for the first time since 2006. Then they took on Texas, the highest seed in the tournament, and did away with them in four to skate into San Antonio as the hottest team going. They outmatched semi-final opponent Florida State as they easily cruised to a 3-0 victory and then they were able to sit back and wait to see who their opponent would be in the finals. Most expected USC to be the victor as the regular season No. 1, but an upstart Illinois team was determined to make the first national final in the school's history. Illinois fought a hard battle with USC that ended in a fifth set heart-breaker and went on to challenge a very relaxed, very rested UCLA squad. Illinois did a good job of keeping themselves in the match by slowing down UCLA's star outside hitter Rachael Kidder early. But in the end, the Bruins had more in the tank and were able to continually claw their way back when they were against the ropes. UCLA won the match in four sets to return the trophy to Westwood for the first time since 1991.
Stacy Sykora Returns
The feel good story of the year goes to USA Volleyball's Stacy Sykora. After suffering a brain injury in a bus accident while traveling to a game with her Brazilian pro team, Sykora remained in a coma for three days. When she regained consciousness, she was determined to get back on the court as soon as possible. Just a few short months later, she got her wish. A four-time Olympian and 2008 silver medalist as the starting libero in Beiing, Sykora's injury made it difficult for her to track the ball once it began traveling toward her.
To correct the problem, Stacy has been doing vision training at a local doctor's office near the training center and has made tremendous progress in expanding her visual field. Though she has not yet competed in tournament competition with the USA team, she made her debut in an intra-squad scrimmage. Sykora hopes to grab a spot on thee 2012 team but knows she has work to do to get back to the level she was at before the accident. Just after he return to the court, I had a chance to hang out with Stacy as she worked on her vision and as she took to the court for the first time since the accident. Stacy was as energetic as ever, as determined as she ever was and overwhelmingly positive about the possibility of another chance to represent the USA in an Olympics. You can check out Stacy's vision training video and footage from her first scrimmage as well as read more about Stacy’s return to the court.
UCLA Wins First Title in 20 Years
The UCLA Bruins won the women’s title after an up and down season that ended with three losses in the team’s last five matches.
After that final loss to national No. 1 USC, the Bruins re-grouped and put together a play-off run for the ages. Along the way they steamrolled four-time national champions Penn State with a 3-0 victory, sending the Nittany Lions home before the Final Four for the first time since 2006. Then they took on Texas, the highest seed in the tournament, and did away with them in four to skate into San Antonio as the hottest team going. They outmatched semi-final opponent Florida State as they easily cruised to a 3-0 victory and then they were able to sit back and wait to see who their opponent would be in the finals. Most expected USC to be the victor as the regular season No. 1, but an upstart Illinois team was determined to make the first national final in the school's history. Illinois fought a hard battle with USC that ended in a fifth set heart-breaker and went on to challenge a very relaxed, very rested UCLA squad. Illinois did a good job of keeping themselves in the match by slowing down UCLA's star outside hitter Rachael Kidder early. But in the end, the Bruins had more in the tank and were able to continually claw their way back when they were against the ropes. UCLA won the match in four sets to return the trophy to Westwood for the first time since 1991.
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