ASU Volleyball: Former outside hitter Cassidy Pickrell is going pro

Growing up, every little kid that plays sports has a dream of making it to the professional level. On Wednesday, former Arizona State volleyball outside hitter Cassidy Pickrell turned her dream into a reality.

Pickrell signed her contract with Viteos NUC volleyball club in Neuchâtel, Switzerland.

“I have dreamed about going pro since I started playing volleyball at age fourteen,” Pickrell wrote in an email to houseofsparky.com. “I didn't really know what that required of me at that age, but I knew I wanted to do that, so being able to tell people that my ‘job’ is a professional volleyball player is so surreal. And Switzerland is beautiful. I couldn't imagine a better place to start my career.”

Pickrell grew up in Coppell, Tex. and garnered accolades all throughout her high school career. She won back-to-back state titles in 2011 and 2012 for Coppell High School.

She transferred into ASU during her junior year from UC Irvine. She spent her first two seasons with the Anteaters accumulating over 600 kills in those two years. She earned a spot on the All-Big West Freshman team.

The next season she was awarded a spot on the 2014 Big West First-Team.

Although Pickrell was only in a Sun Devil uniform for two seasons, she made a lasting impact.

Her first year on the team, she led the team with 304 total kills. She transitioned to the No. 1 outside position when Macey Gardner went down for the rest of the season with an injury in 2016.

She completed her senior year second on the team in kills with 248. Overall, she finished her college career with 1,208 kills.

“I was lucky to be coached by some awesome people while in college,” Pickrell said. “Paula Weishoff who is a volleyball phenom; Jamie Morrison who is currently the head coach for the Netherlands national team; Sanja Tomasevic who is an All-American but might as well be all-world for all the places she's played at, and Jason Watson who completely transformed ASU volleyball into an incredible entity and powerhouse during his reign as head coach.”

While overseas, Pickrell only has a one goal in mind.

“My ultimate goal is just to become the best volleyball player and person I can be,” Pickrell said. “I hope to get a sense of culture shock every time I go to a new place and learn so much about the world and myself throughout my journey as a professional volleyball player.”