She is a whirlwind on the field and bursting with energy.

Rene Sain fearlessly throws himself at every ball that threatens to fall on the ground on the VC Wiesbaden side with his unruly-looking, blond curly hair tied back in a wild ponytail.

The Croatian loves the "crazy" actions that sometimes come about.

There is no longer any reminder that the 25-year-old weakened glandular fever a few weeks ago.

As a result, Libera missed five Bundesliga games played by their VC Wiesbaden volleyball team in November and December last year.

The Hessians were only able to narrowly win one game in this phase, against Straubing.

Sain tried to build up her colleagues during this time with messages she sent to her teammates.

According to her own statements, the defensive specialist, who was "always in a positive mood", could not do more at the time.

Sain is part of the upswing

She reported back for the last game of 2022.

The 3-0 triumph against the bottom of the table VC Neuwied should start a winning streak that now consists of four parts.

The teams from Erfurt, Aachen and on Sunday the Roten Raben Vilsbiburg were also forced to lose in three sets by the VCW.

In the table, the selection of head coach Benedikt Frank has advanced from tenth to seventh and thus one play-off spot.

The coach confirms that Sain has played a significant role in the current upswing in his formation.

The experience of the experienced player benefits the Wiesbaden team, it gives the team "calm and stability," says the 42-year-old.

Nobody could have expected the quick comeback after just one and a half months.

The viral disease that tired Sain mated many other athletes for half a year or more;

its course is difficult to calculate.

"My mother was there during this time and took care of me," says Sain.

"She made sure that I only eat healthy and not eat nonsense like chocolate." That certainly contributed to the recovery.

With five kilos less on the scales, the 1.63 meter tall player felt fit again from the first training session.

“I missed volleyball so much and was happy to be able to play again.

I wanted to give it my all.” Her teammates could now “concentrate on their job”.

The older ones should have helped the second nominal Libera in the squad, the only 18-year-old Leonie Büdenbender;

otherwise, captain Jodie Guillliams had stepped in in Sain's place but was missing as a key force in attack.

Being a reliable partner was the goal of the new head of defence, who came to the state capital in the summer to succeed Justine Wong Orantes.

As a two-time silver medalist in the Europa League, Sain saw no problem in following in the footsteps of the Olympic champion who had emigrated to France.

As a 12-year-old daughter of a volleyball player who had previously been into basketball, she switched sports and initially distributed balls at the net before taking on her current role.

On her 18th birthday, she won the Croatian championship with her then club OK Poreč and has also been defending for the national team of her home country since 2016.

As the winner of the Mediterranean Cup, two years later she came to the Bundesliga for VfB Suhl for the first time through a commitment in the Czech Republic and, of all things, with saves in a duel with her current employer, she earned the award for the best rescue act of the season given by an Internet platform.

The highest level will also be required when the VCW competes with the championship leader in Stuttgart this Friday (7:00 p.m.).

Anything but a clear victory for the German champions and thus an end to Wiesbaden's happiness would be unexpected.

Nevertheless, Sain remains in good spirits: She wants to do everything in her power to drive her opponents to despair with her diving actions.