Summer is usually a time to relax, but not in the case of the MSU volleyball team.

Usually preseason is the time teams start practicing together, getting a feel for what they will be able to accomplish during the upcoming season.

But with four seniors and 11 returning letterwinners, senior co-captain libero Emmy Miller and senior co-captain setter Nikki Colson wanted to get a head start on their competition.

Miller and Colson feel that the 2003 season could be a special one and wanted every returning player to stay over the summer.

"It's the first summer we've had every single member of the team stay," Miller said. "That dedication and commitment has really set the tone for this season."

The team feels the summer helped build team chemistry and trust - two aspects that are key for the team's success.

The team even got some of the incoming freshmen to drive to campus as often as possible during the summer.

"We just decided whenever we had free time we would drive up here," freshman outside hitter Katie Johnson said.

NCAA rules do not allow for coaches to work with athletes during the summer. Therefore, all practices for the summer were set up and run by Miller and Colson.

The two captains had the team practicing four or five days a week, as well as running and weight-lifting two days a week.

A typical summer for volleyball players is to work on their individual game, usually in their hometown, away from the rest of the team.

"My friends, who all play Division I across the country, all go home for the summer," Colson said. "They all go home and do their own training programs."

And since the Spartans were picked to place third in the big Ten this season, above and beyond was the summer's theme.

"We did a lot of stuff that isn't required of us," Colson said. "If we want to be at the level we want to be at, then we had to put in this extra commitment."

The level the team wants to be at is Big Ten champions.

Head coach Chuck Erbe couldn't have asked for anything more from his team before the season.

"Their efforts this summer were excellent," Erbe said. "They've come into the preseason in tremendous physical condition."

All the credit goes to Miller and Colson, and the team feels their leadership has been unmatched.

"I can't say that we've had a better set of captains," senior defensive specialist Stephanie Knopp said. "Being in control of everything, making sure everything was organized, they were never afraid to step in and take control."

The two captains hope the idea of players staying in the summer and working together is a trend that will continue in the future.

"Nikki and Emmy's class (which includes Knopp and senior middle Jenny Rood) was the first class that's ever stayed in the summer all four summers," Johnson said. "And we're going to keep the trend going, no doubt."