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Airman brings home volleyball gold

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Amber R. Kelly-Herard
  • 375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  For many recruits, available health and wellness opportunities are a top interest as they join the Air Force. For a Scott Fitness Center specialist, one of her main goals was continuing to play volleyball.

Senior Airman Jessica Riha, 375th Force Support Squadron, was not only able to achieve that goal by earning a spot on the 2010 Air Force Women's Volleyball team, but she also took home the gold.

"I had tried out in 2007, but did not make it," said Airman Riha. "This year I saw the opportunity at the Fitness Center and went through my chain of command so I could try out again."

Prior to the Air Force, Airman Riha played volleyball in high school and college and on club teams during the off-season. Since she has been in Illinois, she has played at the Sportsplex and Jerzey's. She also coaches the intramural team at Scott.

After two weeks of tryouts, the team practiced two to three times-a-day for two-to-three hours at a time.

"Because all of us have other missions, we do not have the opportunities to play all year long competitively so it was hard," she said. "There were a lot of bruises and injuries, but we had to get to an Olympic skill level."

Airman Riha was also able to use the skills she has learned from her job at the fitness center to help her team.

"I was able to relate to the girls' pain and soreness from the training I received here," she said. "I also knew about nutrition from my training which is very important to athletes to help with building muscles and rebuilding collagen."

Airman Riha also explained that it was a challenge for the team to play not knowing each other.

"I'm used to playing aggressive and there were other aggressive players who would get in the way or call the ball which I am not used to," she said.

After training and practicing as a team for two weeks, they went to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, N.C., where they competed against other women's volleyball teams from every branch.

The Navy team had been the champion for the previous two-years, but the Air Force was able to take the gold this year. The Air Force's Men's Volleyball team also won this year.
"This was a good time and a great opportunity to travel and meet new people from different bases," she said. "I learned how to work as a team and that hard work pays off."
This year Airman Riha played as the libero, a specialized defensive player who is restricted to play as a back row player who cannot serve, block or hit, but next year she hopes to play for the team as an outside hitter.

"I like defense, but I serve well and the libero can't serve," she said. "It is something I have never done before and because I am short it will be a challenge, but it will give me more play time."

To keep her skills up, she plans to coach high school volleyball and join a St. Louis club team.