Page 21 - The Bell Tower - Fall 2014

Bengals in Action ATHLETICS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MAINE AT FORT KENT
California Girls Serve Success
The UMFK women’s volleyball team has a new coach, it is fielding a roster of many new players, and all of the team members are playing far from home, but these apparent defi- cits are actually surprising benefits that have already helped the team win a major tournament in the start of the school year.
Anyone watching the women at prac- tice will see the players move about the court with an efficiency of movement, athleticism, and a familiarity of play that would be the characteristics of volleyball players from the sunny West Coast rather than a team based in the far northern woods of Maine’s winter wonderland.
And that is exactly what is occurring. Seven of the eight women on the team
are from California, a mecca for the game of volleyball. During an athletic scouting sweep through the state of California last year, soccer scouts for UMFK also spoke with volleyball players. Having a successful women’s soccer team and following a great 2013 season for the Bengal volleyball team were just one of the lures that brought the young women to Fort Kent.
“The economical price for a great edu- cation had a big impact on her decision
and it’s much cheaper, even being out-of- state,” said Anna Peabody, a senior from Boulder Creek, California. This is especially true for California, where college costs have skyrocketed. However, in a move reversing a national trend, the University in Fort Kent has actually lowered the price of its tuition to students outside of New England.
Peabody also added that other prices are lower in Maine. “The cost of living is cheaper.”
The seven California girls came from five different towns. They’ve been playing volleyball for years, and they noticed that people on this end of the country might take the game less seriously than they do. Jessany Munoz of Yreka, California, said, “The level is a little less experienced.”
Tom Bird, who is coaching volleyball for the first time in his life, noted that
he and the girls are working together to develop the team’s style. “They are so fundamentally sound,” he added. The approach is a little backwards, in that the girls are teaching him the sport, but he is still providing the structure and guidance. As one player put it, “He had the con- ditioning down. We have the volleyball down.”
The one non-California Girl, Zsakiyah Brown of Uniondale, New York, said the
team is working well together, and they have made her feel at home. “I joined the California Connection,” she said.
The young women bring a playful nature to the chore of practice. As they dive, duck, dip, jump and run within the striped boundaries of the court, there
is laughter, encouragement, and good natured ribbing. Occasionally, when a particular play goes well, the athletes will perform an almost subconscious dance move, as if there is a rhythm and beat to the game that only they can hear.
The players are working on a variety of academic majors, from nursing to educa- tion to behavioral science. They have found that, with the personal encouragement from the staff at UMFK, they are able to keep up with their studies. As one player said, “You can’t miss class, because every- body knows your name.”
The players on the team are Tiara Nolen, OP/DS, Junior, Merced, California; Hope Grace, OH, Junior, Fairfield, California; Jessekah McCorkle, S, Senior, Bayliss, California; Anna Peabody, MB, Senior, Boulder Creek, California; Zsakiyah Brown, OH, Junior, Uniondale, New York; Danielle Carrillo, OH, Senior, Mendota, California; Jessany Munoz, L, Senior, Yreka, California; and LaTisha Carballo, MB/DS, Junior, Orosi, California.
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