BIG TEN TOUR CENTRAL | BIG TEN TOUR RECAP

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois volleyball freshman Rylee Hinton became the third Illini to visit Japan this summer as the Champaign, Ill., native traveled to Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo with the Big Ten Foreign Tour team from June 14-26.

 "This trip could not have gone better," said Hinton. "It was such great experience on the court, I made great friends from girls across the Big Ten Conference and had the chance to visit a country that got me outside of my comfort zone in the best way."

In addition to the six matches played, the tour featured educational exploration and the opportunity to experience new cultures. During the tour, the team explored Japanese landmarks, studied foreign languages and culture with local students and visited some of Japan's most historic sites, including Mt. Fuji, the Gion district, the Fushimi Inari Shrine, the Arashiyama Bamboo Forest and the Philosopher's Walk.

Q & A with Rylee Hinton
How did this experience help you improve your game?
For me, this trip was huge. Since I just joined the team this spring, I have had only had a few chances to see what competition is like at this level and I feel like this trip gave me a good look at what I will be facing in the fall, which is a huge advantage.

Lessons learned on the trip, representing the Big Ten Conference, the University of Illinois, etc…
The biggest lesson that I learned on this trip regarding volleyball was to never judge a team by their appearance. Majority of our Japanese opponents were a lot smaller and less physical than the average Big Ten player, but that by no means said anything about their abilities.

What were your favorite moments on the court?

My favorite moment on the court was by far our match against the Denso Airybees. This was a very highly talked about team and we pulled it together really well early in the trip to pull out a win.

What were your favorite moments off the court?
My favorite moment off the court was definitely the receptions with the opposing teams after the match. Being able to meet and get to know the other players from Japan was an experience I will always carry with me. They were so kind and welcoming and it was so cool to hear about their lives and experiences playing volleyball.

Any other interesting stories or surprises?
The most interesting story was probably one night after a match we were at a reception with a university team from Osaka and they prepared a performance for us imitating Beyoncé. It was pretty funny to see their imitation of American pop culture.

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