Courtesy of Rob Bentley, Ferris State Assistant Athletic Director for Communications

BIG RAPIDS, Mich. - Two members of the Ferris State University women's volleyball program will have an opportunity to represent the United States as Bullog middle hitter Caroline Heitzman (Newaygo) and outside hitter Megan Vander Meer (Grand Rapids), both of West Michigan, have been chosen to attend the 2015 USA Volleyball Women's National Team Tryouts slated for this weekend at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

Heitzman and Vander Meer, who are the lone participants from the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and among only a handful of non-NCAA Division I athletes slated to take part, will join approximately 240 athletes converging on Colorado Springs with the hopes of joining the U.S. Women's National Team. Tryouts will take place from Friday (Feb. 20) thru Sunday (Feb. 22).

Tryouts are for spots on the U.S. Women's National Team, U.S. Collegiate National Teams program and the U.S. Junior National Team. The tryout process will be led by Karch Kiraly, a three-time Olympic gold medalist and U.S. Olympic Hall of Famer. 

The list of athletes taking part in the tryout includes athletes from nearly every level of collegiate competition and nearly 90 institutions along with a high-level group of prep standouts. In order to receive an invitation to the tryout, athletes must have either concluded their college eligibility, be a current collegiate athlete born in the years from 1987 to 1997 or a chosen high school athlete born in 1997 or earlier.

Throughout the weekend, USA Volleyball will provide updates via social media using the hashtag #USAVTryout and the @USAVolleyball handle. Live streaming will also be offered via the official tryout website starting on Friday afternoon at 2 p.m. (MT). Click Here For USA Volleyball Tryout Website

During the tryout, Vander Meer will wear Navy jersey #50 while Heitzman will don the Blue #68 uniform.

The tryout will involve four sessions with three waves per session. Friday's first session goes from 2-8 p.m. MT with Queen of the Court competitions, while Saturday's sessions are at 8 a.m. (focus on serve/receive and individual work) and 2 p.m. (middle-centered and out-of-system focus). The tryout concludes on Sunday at 8 a.m. with tournament style play, along with 16-18 athletes selected by the staff to participate in a "USA" training session.

Those individuals who receive invitations for the U.S. Women's National Team will become full-time members of the squad upon conclusion of their collegiate eligibility or when the scholastic calendar ends for those with eligibility still remaining.

The U.S. Collegiate National Team will choose individuals to compete at the World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea (June 28-July 14), the Tour of China (June 12-26) and the USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships (June 21-30) this coming summer. 

Finally, athletes born in 1996 and after are eligible for participation with the USA Women's Junior National Team. The USA Women's Junior National Team will be participating in the FIVB Volleyball Women's U20 World Championship in Cyprus July 1-13 with a training block from June 14-29 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

Following the tryout, Selections for the U.S. Collegiate National Teams will be made by the end of March, while selected athletes to the U.S. Women's Junior National Team will be notified by April 31 with a public announcement expected by May 7.

This past fall, Vander Meer was named to the 2014 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Honorable Mention All-America Team. In 2014, she led the Bulldogs with 316 kills in 30 matches. Vander Meer appeared in 101 sets and owned one of the squad's top hitting percentages with a .270 figure. Additionally, she tallied 255 digs, 47 blocks and 20 service aces for Ferris State while earning All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference First Team honors along with both AVCA and Daktronics All-Region recognition.

Meanwhile, Heitzman claimed All-GLIAC Honorable Mention accolades and was also chosen to the GLIAC All-Tournament Team after helping guide the Bulldogs to the league postseason crown. She totaled 235 kills with a squad-best 77 total blocks, including 17 solo efforts. Additionally, she averaged 2.53 kills per set and hit a team-leading .291 for the year while adding 50 digs in 30 outings.

Together, the duo helped the Bulldogs to a 24-6 overall record in 2014 and a fourth-straight berth to the NCAA Tournament. FSU also won a share of the GLIAC Regular-Season Championship and claimed the school's second-ever GLIAC Tournament title by beating rival Grand Valley State in the tourney title match.

This past year marked the 13th time in 19 seasons under head coach Tia Brandel-Wilhelm in which FSU has claimed at least 20 victories in a campaign. The Bulldogs have also reached the NCAA-II Tournament 19 times and made 17 consecutive GLIAC Tournament appearances in the stretch.