When Eliza tried out for New Brunswick's Summer Games team, it was a year-long process with cuts until the very end. After the official team was announced in May of 2017, the coach told Jim that they knew they were keeping Eliza after Vancouver in September.
You may find this interesting, because Eliza didn't really see the court in
Vancouver. There were still 24 girls at that time and they were made into two teams for that tournament. Eliza was a middle and there were three other strong middles on the same team. The girls were the top 18U athletes in the province and the competition was high.
During the early months of trying out, Eliza learned that she needed to correct "goofy" footing and she was working hard on it. When she was in Vancouver, they were watching her footing and didn't want her to play with it. Eliza not starting on a team is unusual, but not playing is very unusual. Then they talked to her about learning a new position.
Here is what they noticed about Eliza:
She didn't complain.
She just worked harder.
And they knew they wanted her on the team.
Eliza was a key
right side player for New Brunswick in the Summer Games. This determined team shook up the bigger provinces and brought home the
bronze medal. No other NB volleyball team, men or women, had won a medal at the Canada Summer Games before them!
