A ball is floating in the air - then smashed down with one quick blow. The referee signals the point and junior outside hitter Diana Steplyk screams and congratulates her teammates with high fives.
Senior libero Emmy Miller dug the ball, senior setter Nikki Colson set the ball and senior middle Jenny Rood got the kill. Plus, it's the Green and White match and the season hasn't even started yet.
So why is Steplyk so excited?
"I want to bring the fun and fire to the court," she said. "That is my goal for everyone."
Every sports team is made up of parts, like the parts of the human body. For the MSU volleyball team, Steplyk is the heart.
Steplyk pumps energy into the rest of her teammates knowing if she fails at her job, the team could go down with her.
"Hopefully that is what they look for from me - the emotional stability I bring during the games," Steplyk said. "By being energetic and intense, and bringing that attitude every day in practice and especially in the games, is how I make my teammates better."
During the rough matches, where all hope seems lost, everyone looks toward Steplyk.
"It's hard not to be excited and energized when you have people like Diana on the floor," Rood said.
Head coach Chuck Erbe knows how important it is to have a player like Steplyk on the team - a player who works hard and brings so much to the program, even though she's not a superstar.
Steplyk has taken care of business on and off the court in her three-year career at MSU. Last season, she was named to the 2002 Academic All-Big Ten team and in 2001 was named MSU's Freshman Student-Athlete of the Year.
"She is a person of great integrity," Erbe said. "One of the most emotionally giving players I've had here."
However, Steplyk has not always been the person or player she is today.
"I think I've grown into the personality people see now," Steplyk said. "Through the years of playing volleyball, that's who I am and it shows."
Her path to becoming a starter in MSU's program was not an easy one. Steplyk came to MSU as a hitter, but Erbe felt she would help the team more if she became a defensive specialist.
Over the last three years, she has changed positions twice, going from outside hitter to defensive specialist and back to outside hitter. As a freshman, she played in 17 matches and recorded 93 digs on the season as a defensive specialist. But as a sophomore, she only saw time in 11 matches, recording just 12 digs.
Coming into this season, it had been two years since Steplyk had seen the front row of a volleyball match. And while she played in the back row, she knew she was playing the wrong position.
"I told Chuck at the beginning of this season, 'I recognize that I'm a hitter now,'" Steplyk said. "And I did the extra work necessary to get the opportunity to play."
The extra work consisted of staying over the summer and not only working out and playing with the team but doing even more work on the side. This extra effort, including cardiovascular work, running and pool time, helped her get into competitive shape.
The change in Steplyk's game didn't go unnoticed by Erbe. And it eventually garnered her a starting spot.
"I told Chuck and the rest of my teammates, 'If you give me the opportunity, I'm going to step up and show you what I can do,'" Steplyk said.
