Senior Stories: Halle Peterson
12/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
by Nick Barnowski, MSU Athletic Communications
As a freshman, Halle Peterson felt her leadership skills were what she needed to work on the most.
Three seasons later, the senior setter was the captain of a Michigan State team that reached the NCAA tournament for a fifth-straight season, showing her commitment to the Spartan volleyball program on and off the court.
"It meant a lot," Peterson said. "I definitely took on a much bigger responsibility than I had before. I really loved this team and I knew I'd be able to do it, knowing I was working with them and not against them."
The Rockford, Michigan, native's love for her teammates was not just shown by her captaincy. The setter was setback by a number of injuries in each of her final three college seasons, but didn't let them stop her from rallying back.
"(The injuries) have always been tough because I definitely loved volleyball and that's obviously a part of it," she said. "I knew so many people were rallying behind me, even when I wasn't able to play at the time."
Peterson's passion for volleyball kept her on the court as much as possible. It's a love for the sport that was partly instilled by her parents, Steve and Sandy, who have always been big fans of the game.
She began playing competitively in fourth grade and eventually joined the Dead Frog/Far Out Volleyball Club, which she would play for later in high school. With Dead Frog/Far Out, Peterson helped her team finish fifth at the national competition in 2012. She credits her club coach, Joe Steenhuysen, for helping her prepare for the rigors of Big Ten volleyball.
"I had an awesome coach and he knows [Spartan head coach Cathy George] well, so he coached me like Cathy would â€" very intense and tells it how it is," Peterson said. "He definitely made me tough and I'm super grateful for him."
Peterson arrived at MSU with strong high school volleyball accolades as well. She was a three-year letterwinner at Rockford High School, captaining her team in her senior season. In 2011 she was a finalist for Michigan's Miss Volleyball and was recognized as one of the best setters in the state.
After stepping on to campus, Peterson was surrounded with a supporting cast of teammates who helped her grow as a leader.
"After my freshman and sophomore years, we had a bunch of great leaders like Kristen Kelsay, Lauren Wicinski and Alexis Mathews leave," she said. "I think after that, you realize that you need to step up, and it was awesome.
"I'm so grateful that I played under Kristen because she really taught me what it means to be a good leader and what it means to build relationships with your team. Kori (Moster) was a great leader, too. It was awesome to see how much confidence she had in her skills that helped lead the team."
The 5-foot-10 setter immediately made an impact in her first season, averaging 4.77 assists per set en route to being named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team. She improved on her mark the next season, averaging 5.05 assists per set despite missing some matches due to injury. As an upperclassman, Peterson's leadership has helped the Spartans become serious contenders in a tough conference while also participating in the first-ever Big Ten volleyball foreign tour.
On last summer's tour, Peterson traveled to Croatia, Italy and Slovenia, competing against some of the best volleyball players in all of Europe with other top Big Ten athletes.
"They wanted you to experience the culture and it was cool to see the different ways people play," she said. "I definitely took some of that and brought it back here. The game is super fast there, and the pass and serve game is amazing."
Peterson returned from Europe and helped the Spartans reach the second round of the NCAA tournament, but before her team took off for Seattle, they picked up a win in her final home match at Jenison Field House on Nov. 28.
With a nervous excitement, many members of Peterson's family were in the stands to see her play on senior night, a match she ranks as her favorite memory as a Spartan.
"It was so emotional," she said. "I had a lot of people there who came back to support me, so that was awesome. I broke down a few times just because it was something you put so much time into that was coming to an end."
In the crowd was her parents as well as Michael and Mitch, her two younger brothers. Mitch, who has muscular dystrophy, came to support his sister in her final home match, and is a major reason why she stuck with volleyball when injuries got in the way.
"It's so hard for him to get up (to East Lansing) because it's such a long drive," she said. "It means a lot. He's definitely one of the reasons why I play volleyball and why I kept going and why I think my injuries weren't a huge deal to me because I have life in perspective because of him. To see him at games is a huge thing for me."
Peterson will graduate with a psychology degree and a minor in communicative science disorder, and will pursue her graduate degree with a goal to work as a speech pathologist. The multiple Academic All-Big Ten honoree and 2014 Big Ten Distinguished Scholar hopes to work in a school setting and also is interested in coaching volleyball in the future.
"I wanted to do something where I'm challenging myself and challenging other people," she said. "Once I came to the realization of what I wanted to do, it definitely motivated me on a whole different level."
It's clear the MSU volleyball program will miss Peterson's leadership and play, but she's happy she was able to leave her mark on the team over the past four years.
"I always tell people that this is such an awesome opportunity," she said. "Not only because of the volleyball and all it's provided me â€" but also because it is just such a special time to be a Spartan."
