Mizzou Volleyball Insider: Red, White & Tiger Volleyball
9/30/2019 11:12:00 AM | Volleyball
Deberg & Omazic each competed with Team USA this offseason
COLUMBIA, Mo. - Campus is quiet, the hot sun is blazing down on the few students roaming Columbia during the summer months.
For Mizzou student-athlete Tyanna Omazic, spending her summers at Mizzou means her day consists of routine workouts and attending class.
However, her traditional summer was put on hold after she earned an opportunity of a lifetime.
"I was on my way to my summer classes when I got a text from my coach (Joshua Taylor)," Omazic said. "I read the text and he was congratulating me on making a Team USA roster, I was just so shocked and excited."
Omazic is one of two Tigers selected to trade in the black and gold for the red, white and blue.
Outside hitter Kylie Deberg was also tabbed to a Team USA Collegiate roster.
"I was really excited when I heard the news," Deberg said. "Playing for Team USA has always been a dream of mine."
While Omazic was one of 28 named to the U.S. Women's Collegiate National Team-Anaheim, Deberg was one of 12 chosen for the U.S. Women's Collegiate National Team-World University Games.
"Everyone at this level is elite, competing for a chance to play for Team USA is difficult because they pick the cream of the crop," Mizzou Volleyball interim head coach Josh Taylor said. "Having two represent Mizzou is very impressive, they deserved it and did a really great job." Taylor said.
Tryouts were held March 1-3 in Colorado Springs. The days consisted of three sessions each day. Over 200 girls tried out for the 52 roster spots that were distributed between three Team USA Collegiate teams.
"I had no idea what to expect when I showed up for tryouts," Deberg said. "I wasn't sure what was going to happen but I was really just excited to be there everyday."
Luckily for the Tigers, the structure of USA volleyball is similar to how Tiger volleyball operates.
Tiger coaches Josh and Molly Taylor are both former Team USA athletes.
"Going into tryouts I was so nervous, especially since it was my first year," Omazic said. "But, the speed of the game and what we do at Team USA was very similar to what we do in practice at Mizzou, which made it easier to get into the groove."
During her run with Team USA, Omazic competed in a red versus blue intersquad scrimmage in Anaheim, California, on June 28.
In her Team USA debut, Omazic shined on the court, tallying 7 kills on .462 hitting.
"Being there I was so proud to represent both USA and Mizzou," Omazic said. "I was thinking about all of my coaches and teammates and how I was playing for them."
Leaving the country for the first time, Deberg competed in six games July 5 through 12.
The team went 4-2, defeating Switzerland, Argentina and Ukraine. In the match against Switzerland, Deberg earned a team-high 14 points, including six aces.
"I had never been overseas before and Italy was beautiful," Deberg said. "During my time there I loved learning from all coaches and seeing their different perspectives of the game."
Playing for Team USA not only gave Deberg and Omazic the chance to sharpen their volleyball skills, but the chance to grow as leaders.
Both girls returned to Mizzou volleyball for their second season in the program, their coach and teammates immediately took notice of their proficiency both on and off the court.
"Tyanna has done a really good job of communicating with how we can stop the other team when she is on the front row, that is not easy to do," Taylor said. "Kylie has really improved her skills with effective communication and leading the team emotionally."
Confidence in their communications skills was a common growth for both Tigers.
Both Deberg and Omazic were surrounded by unfamiliar faces and were forced to adapt to new settings very quickly.
"I had to play with a lot of people that I didn't know and I can be really quiet," Deberg said. "That really pushed me out of my comfort zone because I had to thoroughly communicate with them on and off the court."
For Omazic, confidence in communication came through a similar experience.
Her new level of confidence is a key point she wanted to bring to Mizzou volleyball, especially when it involves new members of the program.
"I had to play with girls I didn't know and I knew that communication was going to be a big factor," Omazic said. "I came back to Mizzou wanting to use my communications skills to help include the freshman, since I understand what it feels like to play with an unfamiliar faces."
Now upperclassmen, Deberg and Omazic are gearing up for their junior campaigns with the Tigers.
"I think they are doing good things, they are both having shining moments already this fall," Taylor said. "We are looking forward to how they do this year because they are so emotionally, psychologically and mentally invested in this team."
