By Jeremy Moore/ se news editor
Every Monday from about 2 to 5 p.m., sounds of laughter, music and squeaking sneakers fill the SE gym.
Photos by Hayden Posey/The Collegian
A group of students and faculty gather to play a sport they love.
The SE volleyball club meets every week looking to have fun and practice its craft. The club is a tight-knit group that enjoys spending as much time as it can together. The group consists of veterans and beginners, which is just the way club president Christina Roach wants it.
“When we were initially doing the activity fair, I was telling everybody they could be any level, and we’ll teach you,” she said. “The fun part is that I kind of get to be part of the teaching process.”
Jeremiah Avin is one of the club beginners. Avin joined the club because volleyball was always a sport that he wanted to play. He takes advantage of learning from veterans such as Roach.
“I just started playing, but I like it a lot,” he said. “I’m just following the vets. All of the vets are good.”
Club member Andy Acevado has been playing volleyball since the age of 10. He does not have much experience playing organized volleyball as some others, but he still enjoys the game.
“Volleyball is just one of my favorite sports,” he said. “When I was growing up, I would always go to the lake or beach and play volleyball.”
Unlike other clubs, this club is open to all on SE Campus. Anyone who wants to play just has to show up. This attracted SE administrative assistant Tera Lomax.
“I played volleyball in high school, and I saw these people hanging out,” she said. “I was excited to learn that they play volleyball here.”
SE history professor Joel Tovanche also comes to play with the club on Mondays.
“I like to hang out with students because it keeps me sharp,” he said. “Some of my students sometimes come in and play, so it’s a good way to interact with them.”
SE instructional aide Ian Ussery started the volleyball club as a student and now is the club’s sponsor. He still plays regularly with the club because volleyball is his favorite sport. He describes it as one of the ultimate team sports.
“One thing you notice is that there’s a lot of communication,” he said. “When they go on a good rally, there’s a lot of talking. But with a bad rally, you don’t hear a lot of talking.”
He also believes that life lessons can be learned from playing volleyball.
“If one of your teammates isn’t playing well, you can’t just not pass them the ball,” he said. “Volleyball teaches you how to help those who are struggling.”
Kinesiology instructor Shahzad Nazir is another club sponsor who also plays regularly.
“Overall, we have pretty good numbers,” he said. “The mix of experienced players and beginners helps the beginners get better.”
The club averages 20-30 members at each meeting, and it has won the districtwide tournament for the last two years. It hopes to keep this streak going. Despite the success, Nazir feels the club may always have one problem.
“Facilities are our main problem,” he said. “It can be hard to do certain drills because of the size of our gym.”
For SE to have a regulation-size court, its current court would have to expand 16 feet. Although the court may be small, Nazir believes the students’ desire to play and be together will keep the club going strong.
“We’ve done a good job reloading from one semester to the next, and that’s what it’s all about,” he said. “They just love playing and being around each other.”
