The 2020 volleyball season was anything but normal. The schedule was shortened and then split into fall and spring seasons. While the changes forced constant adjustments, it also provided some rare opportunities in a season unlike any other.

For Mizzou freshmen Kaylee Cox (Flower Mound, Texas) and Lauren Forbes (Springfield, Mo.) the transition to a split competition season presented an opportunity the pair could not pass up, as both graduated high school in December and enrolled a semester early at Missouri. 

“I was kind of thinking that my high school season was going to end and so I was just going to be in an offseason,” said Cox, the 45th-ranked player in the nation for the class of 2021. “I was going to be playing club, but in club I play right side and I would rather play outside; so, I wanted to get up here and train as an outside and get good coaching by college coaches, get better training up here and that’s why I decided to come early.”

For Forbes, the decision to enroll early was also driven by an opportunity to get a jump start in the college game.

“One factor that played into my decision of graduating early was that I was an age waiver for clubs, so I played 18s already in club for one year,” Forbes said. “Instead of playing that twice, I decided to come here early and train. I thought that’d kind of get me ahead of the game, so I’m really glad I made the decision.” 

When Cox and Forbes joined Mizzou for the spring season, they pandemic-altered schedule meant the two would get to experience a slew of SEC matches and Mizzou’s seventh-straight NCAA Tournament appearance.

“It was really cool and a super-unique experience I don’t think anyone will get again,” Forbes recalled. “I’m really thankful for that. We got to see what game days were like, and normally in a spring we wouldn’t get that.”

The pair saw 14 regular season contests in total, all in SEC play, participated in Mizzou’s practices and eventually traveled to the NCAA Tournament in Omaha, Neb.

“It's a really great experience to be able to watch those games and be practicing against some of the top players in the country,” Cox said. “I think that got me really mentally and physically prepared, especially the training from all the different girls and how they were playing; so, I think I'm super ready for the season to start.”

The unprecedented spring meant the two Mizzou freshmen could adapt to the college game in a way no previous early enrollees could. The practice time on court exposed the pair to competition against one of the top 25 teams in the country and allowed the two to see what training at an NCAA Tournament level was all about.

“I think it helped my hitting improve a lot,” Cox said of what she felt was the biggest benefactor of her play in spring. “In high school and club, it’s a whole different game and it’s not as fast paced. There’s a lot bigger blockers [in college] and so just trying to find different shots to hit and being smarter with my ball placement helped my game a lot.”

For Forbes, the most impactful experience in spring came in the form of learning a typical in-season routine. 

“I think a really big adjustment I had to make was adapting to what it was like in an actual season versus a normal spring. Normally coming into spring it would be more regular training and workouts. So, I think that was a big adjustment to what a game-like situation is and normal season versus a spring. I think that really helped us improve our game and see what that [season experience] is like.”

With the experience of a unique spring season under their belts, the duo ais looking to carry those lessons learned into the fall where the Tigers feature nine new faces on the roster. Six of those are freshmen, including Cox and Forbes, while three joined the squad via the transfer portal as well. With the influx of newcomers, Cox and Forbes hope to pass on that spring experience to their fellow freshmen.

“It kind of makes us leaders of our class,” said Forbes. “We are able to kind of lead them and help them adjust to what it was like for us. We can relate with those personal relationships for them on the team, and I think it's really beneficial for us to kind of just show that and lead them in workouts and practices and kind of help them expect what a game day is like.”

It's helped a lot,” Cox said in echoing the sentiment, “especially, helping the new freshmen that are here, even though they're my same class, get through it because I went through the same exact thing just a little bit earlier than them.”

For now, there’s two more weeks to work through the transition before finally reaching the floor in the Hearnes Center on August 26th. It’s a day both Cox and Forbes along with the rest of the 2021 Tigers are eagerly anticipating.

“I’m excited to actually step on the court,” Cox said as a smile spread across her face. “It was hard just watching in the spring but I’m really excited to actually play.”

“I think we are going to succeed,” said Forbes of her expectations. “We have a really good group, I think me personally, just putting in the work every day will eventually pay off. This is a really special group of girls and we have a really unique group. I think that's something special and that a lot of teams don't get. We're working a lot on our culture, which I think wins games overall, so I think that's super important and I'm excited for the season.”