The RoundHouse | 8/11/2021 4:34:00 PM

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Lily Liekweg and Brynn Stansberry made Mondays their day of recovery and bonding last season.
 
They talked a little volleyball before moving to other subjects at Stansberry's apartment. They studied and did laundry. They watched "The Bachelor." They ate a bit of ice cream from Crumbl Cookies. Most of all, they helped each other through 2020-21.
 
"It was our regrouping day," Stansberry said. "Last year was really hard on everyone, with all the COVID stuff. That Monday, for me and Lilly, was to take our mind off of all that. Those days were really good for us."
 
They are not sure about their Monday plans for this season. They do know that their friendship and work together is part of a strong start to the fall for the Shockers.

"At the end of the day, we're there for each other," Stansberry said. "She's made me the player I am. I wouldn't be here without Lilly."
 
Wichita State coach Chris Lamb is thrilled with his liberos and defensive specialists, plotting ways to get them on the court to give the Shockers a ball-control edge he feels they lacked in recent seasons.
 
"Our entire group is giving 110-percent," Liekweg said. "We're always hitting the ground. Lambo is always hitting balls at us; we're always diving. We're always getting back up and doing more."
 
Liekweg is in her third season with the Shockers, who went 9-8 last spring in the COVID 19-delayed schedule. She ranked second on the team with 179 digs and took over as libero late in the season. Stansberry played in seven matches last season, her first as a Shocker.
 
Kyle Marneris returns after redshirting and newcomers Annalie Heliste and Lara Uyar complete the group. After several years set back by injuries and inexperience, Lamb said he believes this group can compete with the best in the American Athletic Conference.
 
"We've been trying to get caught up, but you've got to put seeds in the ground," Lamb said. "Now, as I'm working with them, I finally, finally, get to say we're back. We're relevant at that position now."
 
Liekweg and Stansberry see a difference with this group of littles. Lamb looks forward to running systems that emphasize the strength of his defense and passing.
 
"We put a lot of time in during the off-season," Stansberry said. "We're very competitive with each other, but at the same time, we're such a close-knit group and we want each other's success."
 
On Wednesday morning, Lamb directed the group that the "In and out" drill designed to teach digging and pursuit. The effort reminded him of past strong groups.
 
"That's as good as we've done that drill since 2017," he said. "They're running."
 
Liekweg recorded a career-high 28 digs vs. Kansas late last season and has continued her improvement.
 
"She works really hard and wants to be good," Lamb said. "She's never going to look unbelievably smooth or polished – she sort of does it her own way – but she does it really well. She's just such a gritty warrior that she works her way to production."
 
Stansberry transferred to Wichita State from Iowa Western Community College last season. Stansberry credits associate head coach Sean Carter with help on serve-receive.
 
"I feel like I have a confidence this year that I didn't necessarily have last year," Stansberry said. "Last year was a lot of trial-and-error for me on serve-receive. I was trying to fix things and do things a little bit differently. Those things are finally clicking for me."
 
That improvement puts Stansberry in competition with Liekweg.
 
"Brynn Stansberry is a completely different volleyball player than one year ago," Lamb said. "She is so much better, so much more aware, anticipating, ranging."
 
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.