Long before even the early birds were thinking about abandoning their beds for classes, the ladies of Binghamton’s Womens Club Volleyball team were dragging their bags across campus to the steady mantra of “80 degrees and sunny.” Eight representatives from the club team were leaving the Binghamton cold to travel to Houston, Texas to play at the Nationals Tournament.
The team is challenged every year to play in local tournaments to qualify for nationals in some, usually sunny, locale. It’s been in Dallas, Texas, Louisville, Kentucky, and this year it just happened to fall in glorious Houston, Texas.
But the Lady Bearcats knew that it wouldn’t be a cake walk getting to Nationals. Year ‘round they fundraised, doing anything from working at the Binghamton Senators games to selling candy and coffee, and played hard all year to show what they were capable of as a team. Because of that hard work, the girls found their way to Texas without having to pay out of pocket, making this trip that much more special.
Team from left to right: (back) Nicole Vavra, Jacqueline Moeller, Andrea Cioffi, Carmen Rey, Zoë Pichler. (front) Kelly Curran, Lauren Woods, Marisa Campbell.
Unfortunately, until the moment the girls hit the court at Hoston’s Relient Center, nothing seemed to be going their way. Two of the players they were so used to playing with had to pull out from the trip due to personal reasons, leaving the girls scrambling to try and find someone to play their positions.
Then to add onto the stress of not having a middle hitter, travelling didn’t seem to be in the girl’s favor either. From getting lost trying to navigate Newark Airport’s roadways, not having a shuttle from Houston’s George Bush to their hotel, and then ending up at the wrong hotel at the end of the day, the girls could only hope that everything would get better from there.
And better they did.
No, the ladies didn’t win the entire tournament and they unfortunately won’t be getting a Lifetime movie about them being the mighty underdog but they did play their hardest.
“Considering we didn’t have our normal lineup, that this was a young team, and it was almost everyone’s first trip to nationals, I think we did a great job,” said the setter and senior, Nicole Vavra. “We had some expected challenges, but we were able to adjust. I think it was a great learning experience for everyone.”
The eight girls who went to Texas were seniors Marisa Campbell, Kelly Curran, Zoë Pichler and Nicole Vavra, sophomore Carmen Rey, and freshmen Lauren Woods, Jacqueline Moeller and Andrea Cioffi, making this a very young team. Out of the eight, only two had participated in the national tournament before.
Such a young team would be expected to come across a few challenges, one of which was defense. Luckily, the Bearcats noticed the problem on the first night and had plenty of time to work through the issue.
“We’re all playing different defenses,” said senior and outside hitter Zoë Pichler as the team huddled in a corner after three losses their first night. “It’s not a bad thing and it’s not even really noticeable until a ball hits the floor. So can we choose a defense?”
After that meeting, the girls played the best defense they had the entire year. It was obvious that Nationals was a growing experience for the eight.
It wasn’t until the final day of the tournament, during the sudden death rounds that the girls finally pulled out a win.
With the score within five points and the team’s new friends cheering them on, Zoë pulled the girls off of the court for a quick inspirational cheer to get everyone pumped up and ready to win.
“Bearcats ‘til I die. Bearcats ‘til I die. I know I am. I’m sure I am. A Bearcat ‘til I die.”
Among Vavra’s favorite memories, most of which were great team bonding moments, was the win.
“We proved that we could do it, and that we all deserved to be there,” said Vavra.
“I think we played well overall,” said freshman and outside hitter, Andrea Cioffi. “It would’ve been nice to get some more wins though, of course.”
But that’s what next year is for.
As for the 2011 Nationals tournament, the girls will always remember the great bond that they made with one another and other teams and how much they grew as a team.
“This is probably the most fun I have ever had playing volleyball,” said Marisa Campbell, a senior and right side hitter, “It was great to be on a team where you can be yourself and know that everyone is behind you, even if you screw up. Volleyball was always my time in school to relax and do something that really made me happy. I am so thankful to these girls for making my senior year so memorable.”