By the time August rolled around, and the Washington State Volleyball team prepared for their season opener against Lafayette College, freshman Maddy Joswick was ready to make an impact on day one.

Joswick was committed to Washington State in high school, but when the previous coaching staff left, Joswick reopened her recruiting. After taking another visit with newly hired head coach Korey Schroeder, though, she said she believed in the vision he had for the program. Schroeder also presented an opportunity for Joswick to join the program early and forego her senior at high school.

With Joswick wanting to get a headstart on her collegiate career, she took the opportunity to begin college early and enrolled in running start. Throughout the first semester of her senior year at high school she took running start classes while staying at home in Spokane.

She arrived to campus in the winter and took classes here in the spring. Joswick said it helped settling into the flow of being a college student during the offseason, rather than getting here in the summer.

"I think it made a huge difference getting that whole extra semester to train," Joswick said. "Especially under the coaches where they could teach how they want passing and things like that. It was a huge advantage. I was also able to get used to academics and how college runs before jumping into season, so by the time the season rolled around, I was mostly focused on volleyball.

This headstart helped the freshman carve out a role in her first year. She played in 98 sets across 28 games and is grateful for the opportunity she received in her first year.

"It's my first season so I feel like everything feels so new, and I don't really have anything to compare it to, but it's been really positive," Joswick said. "I'm excited just to be getting time on the court as a freshman."