Life In College Athletics

Now in her junior year at Campbell University daughter Morgan headed off to Campbell to be the manager of the volleyball team three years ago. All athletic teams that play in the fall arrive in early August  to begin practice before seasons begin late August or early September.

One of the first girls that Morgan met on the team was a girl named Jessica Groen pronounced grown from Las Cruces New Mexico.  Jess had transferred from N C State who had a new coach and like all new coaches they have styles they want to play and Jess didn't fit the new style.  Morgan and Jess are both new to the Creek.

If there was ever a Mutt and Jeff this is it.  Jess stands at six feet two while Morgan on a good day is a foot shorter.  Over the next two years Jess is one of Campbell's best players.  After Morgan's freshman year and The Camels fail to win a conference game a new coach is brought in  Greg Goral.  Greg is a teacher not a fusser and his first year Campbell wins four conference games.  His recruits over his first two years you can tell are better but little old Campbell has a hard sell to get the  six feet four and more girls to come to the country.  Volleyball is all about power at the net both be able to block shots or deliver a kill that the other team has to get out of the way of. 

Senior year for Jess  and the Camels starts  with a weekend trip to California and Maryland and with all the new players bidding for playing time Jess finds that she is not having a senior year like her first two in Buies Creek and coach by conference time has decided to play the younger players and Jess finds the court hard to get on.  Women's college volleyball you don't sit on the bench but stand in the corner until your time to go in.  As conference wore on Jess hardly took off her warm up jacket.

This can be a terrifying experience for anyone their senior year after being one of the best players on the squad the last two.  Every phase of our lives we come to cross roads in life.  Didn't get the promotion you thought you should get.  There is an old saying that life is 10% action and 90% reaction.  Jess worked as hard as ever every day at practice.  Her disappointment was only known by those close to her.  She stayed a great team mate for others who now got on the court when she didn't.

This weekend was the last home stand of the season at Campbell and Saturday was senior day.  Jess's family was there in force from New Mexico to Iowa because you see it's a long ways to see your children play every time out when they are two thousand miles away.  Many games are lived streamed but most are only on game tracker.  As luck would have it Jess gets into the lineup because an injury has occurred to the player in front of Jess now.

Jess now gets to play in front of her family and Friday played only average.  Saturday Senior day the Camels are faced with playing the top team in the Big South Liberty who on the year is 22-7.  The Camels fighting for the 8th spot need to win because they know UNC Asheville a game behind them and owning the tie breaker with Camel upset Winthrop.  Her final game ever in Gore Arena Jessica Groen played at the level she had played in past seasons.  She gets the winning ace to cap off one game victory and on the day had ten kills.

Over the last three seasons Pat and I have seen about 20 games each season and have traveled to California, Maryland and Kentucky  as well as many conference games in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina.  We have grown to love Jess as all the girls on the team.  We love her even more after what she has endured her senior season and her reaction to it.  None of us know much about our futures and whether Jess heads back to New Mexico or calls Carolina home.  I hope fifty years from now that Jess and Morgan are still great friends.  I know they will be because Jess during her trying season has stayed the Jess we all know through thick and thin.  They are the type people you want to be friends with for the rest of your life.