Page 22 - The BellTower - Spring 2016

Bengals in Action
Volleyball “Family” Brings West Coast Play to UMFK
The 11 ladies comprising the University of Maine at Fort Kent Bengals Volleyball team made school history when the volleyball program made its first ever appear- ance in the 2015 USCAA National tournament. UMFK volleyball coach Tom Bird said the team, largely assembled from athletes from the west coast, brought a whole new level of play to the program, achieving a 44-12 wins record over two years.
“They are all great players,” said Bird. “Volleyball on the west coast is very well taught and these girls have been playing for forever. This is not anything we’re doing special here, they’re the ones getting the job done. The special thing we’re doing is bringing them here to Maine,” he said.
The University recruited all of the players from California.
“The level of volleyball in California is much higher than here. Having 11 girls from California and bringing them all together has been very successful.”
seed, and now the team has grown into a juggernaut of west coast play by including many more athletes from the other side of the United States.
Coach Bird, who took over the team last year, recruited the rest of the current team. “All of the eight newcomers I recruited this year. I made one trip to California for about eight days and was able to recruit eight girls, so it was a worthwhile trip,” he said.
According to Bird, athletic scholar- ships have little to do with the University’s recruiting methods, because only $3,000 in such funds are available for the entire team. Instead, scouts share other practical and attractive benefits UMFK offers.
“School is really cheap compared to California. They know with 10 or 11 girls on the team they will have an opportunity to play and get a lot of time on the floor,” the coach said. “The student-teacher ratio is small, so teachers are going to know the students on a first name basis, on a day
to day basis. They will get all of the atten- tion they need (academically) and not fall behind, because they’re not just a number like they could be at a larger school.”
California). If you see a dog on the street, you’re more likely to see a moose here.”
Nolen, a nursing student, spent two years playing volleyball at Merced College in California before switching to UMFK. She said it was the academic opportunities at the university that ultimately convinced her to transfer, although she appreciates being able to play volleyball for UMFK.
“They told me about the nursing program. There is a three-year waiting
list in California (to get into a nursing pro- gram). I like the small classes compared to California. You get one-on-one learning. It’s hard. It’s a challenge. They really push you to succeed here, but it’s a really good program,” she said.
Nolen has made the most of her adven- ture in Maine. She enjoys snowmobiling and snowshoeing, although she admitted she’s not a big fan of skiing.
According to Nolen, being thousands
of miles away from home is made easier by the fact that her teammates are also
far from home. “We click and we are all so grateful for the opportunity to play volleyball. Everyone appreciates being
on the court. To have a team come together from so far away from home—but relate as a family together—we all can relate to being so far away.”
According to Coach Bird, the USCAA ranked the volleyball team as high as fourth in the USCAA National rankings, which is the highest ranking a UMFK volleyball team ever achieved. The Bengals have won all home matches in the past three years, and in 2015 they entered the USCAA National Tournament as the No. 9 seed.
“All of us play our roles. Everyone has a role, and without any one of our team members, we wouldn’t have this success,” La La said.
As for the three seniors who departed at season’s end, Coach Bird offered noth- ing but praise and appreciation for them at senior night. “They came to UMFK at
a time of rebuilding, and shattered the school record for wins. They stand out most for their selflessness... Their team- first mentality is something I will never forget about them,” he said.
The University recruited the girls
over the past three years. Former coach Quintina Young brought in three star senior players: LaTishsa Carballo, or “La La” as fans and fellow players know her; Tiara Nolen; and Hope Grace.
Coach Bird recognized these three play- ers on “senior night” between matches at a doubleheader against the University of Maine at Presque Isle (UMPI) near the end of the season at the UMFK Sports Center.
These three original players were the
Carballo, who is a public safety major, said those reasons were factors in her decision to transfer from Porterville College to UMFK. “It was cheaper to come here and there is more opportunity for playing time than we would get in California.”
La La admitted to finding herself in new territory when she traveled from one coast to the other to attend college at UMFK. “There was definitely a difference. It was a culture shock kind of when I first got here. You don’t expect to see moose and deer (in
20 | The Bell Tower