By Martina Barrera-Hernandez
NUsports.com contributor

Symone Abbott is a force to be reckoned with.

The junior leads the Big Ten in attacks per set, points, total attacks and total kills and has more than 1,000 career kills.

Abbott has met her match in the 'Cats' new coach, Shane Davis. Under the team's new leader, Abbott has been challenged to play all six rotations to sharpen her talents, develop new skills and become stronger all around.

"We have our best attacker, maybe our best player in the gym, so why only allow her to play half the game?" says Davis. "Obviously that's a lot on someone. A lot mentally as well, and so I think she's done a great job as far as taking everything we've given her and transitioning to everything on the court right now."

Although it has been a sometimes hard--though welcome--challenge for Abbott, she hopes it will help her become a more complete player going forward.

To succeed in her new role, Abbott uses her "will to win" to stay focused, "because in order to win I have to key in on the responsibilities I have and be good at executing them."

"I feel more engaged in the match and I like having more control over the outcome," says Abbott. "It's frustrating being inexperienced at something but once I get better it'll be really rewarding."

Her coach couldn't agree more. While he understands that playing all the way around pushes Abbott out of her comfort zone, Davis believes that Abbott is able to use her strengths in exactly that kind of learning environment.

"Symone is different [than some of her teammates] in the sense that she's really thrived off of things being a little bit more chaotic in practice, where it's not so black and white," says Davis. "She's one that's really taken off from where we first started to where she is now, in terms of her level of play and what she's able to do. And I think she just thrives in the type of environment that we have."

Abbott hopes that her passion and dedication on the court leads others to take action and play their best.

"I lead by example for this team," says Abbott. "My biggest hope is that when I get a kill, it drives someone else to get one too, and then drives another person to get a dig, and then another person to get an ace. That's how you make people better around you. So that way leading can directly affect point scoring, and thus wins and losses."

Indeed, Symone's growth as a player is a source of inspiration for her teammates. Junior teammate Taylor Tashima describes Abbott not only as her best friend at Northwestern, but also as a dedicated and hardworking player and a great source of confidence for her teammates.

"On the court, Symone leads by action. She is the most improved player on our team without question," says Tashima. "Symone has developed into a player who has the power to change the momentum of a game. As a setter, she's someone I'd trust with game point of a national championship game."

Both Davis and Tashima believe that Abbott's senior year will be exceptional because of the growth she has achieved this year as well as the support she will get from a talented cohort of players on the court next year.

"Symone has a bright future ahead of her in volleyball, especially with all the technical and strategic training she is getting," says Tashima, who also attributes much of Symone's success to what she says is "the best coaching staff in the Big Ten."

"I think next year will be a big year for her. We know Symone. We know exactly what she needs and what to build off of and what our foundation is," says Davis.

While Davis is excited about the future, next year promises to be bittersweet.

"I wish I had a few more years with Symone. I wish she was a freshman this year and we had three more years after this to continue to develop her and be the player that she will be. It'll be sad to lose her in a couple years--wish she was around for a few more, that's for sure."

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Symone Abbott: A Force To Be Reckoned With

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Players Mentioned

Symone Abbott

Taylor Tashima

Northwestern University Athletics

Northwestern University Athletics

Symone Abbott: A Force To Be Reckoned With

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