By Rachel Salasky
Contributing Writer
Volleyball players at the College of Saint Rose educated girls from the NorthEast Thunder Volleyball Club on the fundamentals of the sport on Sunday. By noon the entire team was in the gym at Albany Leadership Charter School for Girls teaching the importance of basic volleyball skills.
Girls ages seven to 14 were in the gym first to work on serving and learning to communicate on the court. The team did a fifteen-minute demo of what college level volleyball is like to show the girls the faster pace. The noise in the gym was at an all time high as the Golden Knights players hustled through every play communicating the entire time.
“How much you communicate is a direct correlation to how good your team is as a whole,” said Erica Ziskin, 19, sophomore setter for the Golden Knights.
By two in the afternoon the second round of girls came in, ages 15 to 18. Some girls have already committed to play in college and others were looking for insight into the world of collegiate volleyball.
Bryan Swift, 59, is the director of the NorthEast Thunder Volleyball Club and has been in charge for the last six years, coaching with the club for 13. He is currently coaching the Junior Thunder team girls ages seven to 12. They are just now learning the fundamentals.
When asked what he hoped the girls learned from the day in the gym, Swift said he “hoped the girls got to see your enthusiasm and also to see the level of play that is maybe in reach for some of them.”
All athletes at Saint Rose are required to participate in community service hours. Samantha Atchinson, 19, sophomore libero for the Golden Knights was in charge of organizing the program.
“I decided to put the clinic together because I thought it would be a really good opportunity for our team to get involved in the community,” said Atchinson.
Atchinson has been a coach with the club since January 2015.
The team felt the appreciation from the girls while they taught them their skills.
“I like being able to see their face light up when they like accomplish a new skill you helped them with,” said freshman Cara Kullman, 18. Ziskin also enjoyed teaching the girls.
“I like when the kids apply the skills as soon as I try to help them. It really makes me feel like they appreciate what we do for them,” she said.
Thanks to Atchinson the Saint Rose women’s volleyball team was able to get on a different court and teach the girls the skills that carried them to NCAA Tournament this past fall.
“I hope the girls learned that it is okay to try new things, and while sometimes you may fail, it is the only way you will improve on and off the court,” said Atchinson.
After all the playing ended, the team sat down with the players to discuss the benefits of being a student athlete.
“I feel like the girls really listened to what we had to say and appreciated our advice about college and the recruiting process,” said sophomore hitter Maryellen Devic, 19.
Come cheer on the volleyball team as they have their first spring tournament at home on March 28.
