UNC’s Huhn Takes Game To A Whole New “Altitude”, Reflects On NCAA Tournament in Hawaii
Like most college volleyball players over winter break, Cece Huhn was hanging out with some former teammates and coaches at a club practice. Wearing her Northern Colorado volleyball shirt, proudly supporting the team she is now a part of where a week prior she was playing in front of 8,000 fans in Hawaii in the 1st Round of the NCAA Tournament.
For Huhn, the Class of 2019 graduate of Plymouth High School in Wisconsin, the former Wisconsin Volleyball Academy/One Wisconsin athlete went off to school this summer with hopes of contributing like any other athlete walking into a new program. After a decorated high school career in multiple sports, Huhn has always been a go-to player, a key part of any winning combination, but it didn’t quite work out that way when the season first started.
“The speed of the game and getting used to playing with players of such high athleticism and skill and getting to that level and even realizing that you are at that level and compete with these athletes was a big adjustment at first,” said Huhn.
“Going to the college game as a Freshman I kind of expected to be on the bench at first, but then I realized that I am as physical as everyone else and worked as hard as I could to get to that spot and really help them out. When I got that spot, the realization that I am good enough and the hard work I have put in and will continue to put into the sport that I love so much was so worth it.”
At 6’2, Huhn brings an extremely dynamic style to the court with her high reach, lateral quickness, and major presence to the net being able to go pin to pin with her block as well as her attack with multiple tempos is a lethal combo. What started as playing a set here and there at the beginning of the season, soon became a consistent spot in the lineup with key matches in the Big Sky Conference Tournament hitting .462 in the quarterfinals against Montana with 7 kills and followed it up with a .362 hitting percentage in the semifinals with 7 kills again in the championship when UNC punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament with a five-set victory over Weber State. On the season Huhn hit .219 and also racked up 37 total blocks.
Walking up this morning ready to dance! 🐻🏐🏆💃 #GoUNCBears #BigSkyVB pic.twitter.com/7ZXFM38gON
— UNC Bears Volleyball (@UNC_BearsVB) December 1, 2019
“Our conference tournament was an emotional rollercoaster. Being the number one seed heading in we had a major target on our back. The emotions of being up and down throughout the sets, it was an emotional toil on you doing it for three straight days. Physically and mentally we were so gassed, but so worth it being able to put on our sticker on the banner, holding the trophy, all the hardwork paying off, and then being on NCAA Selection Show on ESPN and the NCAA Instagram account was an incredible experience.”
These rallies tho… 😲#NCAAVB | @UNC_BearsVB @HawaiiWVB pic.twitter.com/DWI2mO3BHf
— NCAA Volleyball (@NCAAVolleyball) December 7, 2019
Watching the NCAA Selection Show meant that Northern Colorado would be heading to Hawaii for their first-round match. The Rainbow Wahine women’s volleyball team is comparable to a pro sports team in Hawaii where they will average over 7,000 fans per match.
“Their fans were amazing, playing there with close to 8,000 people all cheering for Hawaii was incredible. They were also supportive of us, whenever we made a good volleyball play, there were cheers for us. They knew the game, even after the match whether it was around their arena or in town we had people all over coming up and congratulated us for making it. When you have people that you really don’t know coming up to you and recognizing you for what you’ve done is really special,” said Huhn.
Beyond the conference championships and an NCAA Tournament trip to Hawaii, there is always the process to get to that point that never comes easy. Being part of the Big Sky Conference involved plenty of travel, long flights, beautiful views, and classes missed where time management was essential to the success in the gym, but especially the classroom.
“At the beginning, it’s a little bit like being thrown to the wolves. With weights in the morning, classes during the day, and practice at night it definitely was an adjustment. It was important for me really plan out my day and prioritize what needs to get done and putting aside the things that don’t,” said the Biological Science major.
“We knew physically we could play with any of these teams, but mentally knowing that you have to be ready to play after a three-hour flight is something we had to adjust to. Even playing in places that have really high altitude was an initial adjustment as well.”
From adjusting to the level of play, new expectations, travel, and even the altitude is enough for any college Freshman to handle. For Huhn, the hard work paid off and she will continue to work hard for what she loves to do and compete at the highest level.
“After going through all of this the hard work definitely pays off and once we won and had the NCAA Tournament appearance it makes us want to do it again that much more.”