Pia Timmer never saw herself at Washington State University or as a top recruit for its volleyball program. However, she surprised herself and the people in her hometown when she chose to become a Coug for the fall 2019 season.
Timmer's passion for competitive volleyball came naturally. When Timmer was young, she watched her mom play the sport, which she still plays to this day. Timmer also played volleyball with her cousins growing up.
"In a small town, we were always playing volleyball. It was like our city's sport," Timmer said. "We were a Division-2 high school where we finished second place at the Under-20 Championships." Timmer grew up in Emlichheim, Germany, which is close to the border of the Netherlands. The city has a population of just over 7,000 people.
"Our town is pretty farmer based with a landscape, so I never grew up in a city. It was more of a family-based town," Timmer said. Washington State's landscape reminded her of home. Timmer loved her life in Emlichheim. She always imagined she would be near her family and go to college in Germany. Timmer never expected to be a part of a volleyball team due to the competitive recruitment process.
Timmer also did not expect to go to school in the United States. She said that during the high school championship,
Burdette Greeny, an WSU volleyball associate head coach, scouted her.
"The assistant coach reached out to me using Messenger and I didn't respond for days," Timmer said.
Hunt said in the message to Timmer that she showed drive, dedication and strength in her position as an outside hitter on and off the court.
When Timmer was thinking about her college career and what she wanted to do, she remembered that WSU had an active interest in her style of play. She finally returned assistant coach Hunts' messages and ended up meeting with her twice that summer.
Through these meetings, and two visits to Pullman, Timmer fell in love with WSU and decided to make Pullman home for the next four years. Her passion for volleyball, and sports in general, led her to major in kinesiology.
Timmer said her life in the United States is different from her upbringing in Germany. For example, she said the tests here are much easier for her than the tests back home.
"The exams back home were all essay questions," Timmer said. "The tests would take up to three hours to complete. While the exams at WSU may be in my second language, English, they are mostly multiple choice."
Timmer made a name for herself at WSU her freshman season. She led the team with 346 kills, 388 points and 1,055 attacks. Timmer was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team and was named to the VoleyballMag.com Freshman All-American team as an honorable mention.
