This summer, I was in the preseason for volleyball when disaster struck. I went up to hit, came down, and heard a pop. After a visit with DMOS, my surgeon told me that I had torn my ACL and needed to halt all open gyms, lifting sessions, and workouts. I quickly lost the routine that had become so dear to me through my time at Dowling Catholic. I didn’t know what I was going to do, and I was devastated that a large part of what made me who I am, wasn’t a part of me anymore.
After spending the summer working, counseling at Catholic Youth Camp, and spending time with family, I was still heartsick and even somewhat jealous of the girls who still got to be a part of the Dowling volleyball program. Since I had planned on being at every volleyball event that summer, my phone would periodically go off with Google Calendar reminders telling me what was going on that day, which kept me from ignoring what I was missing. Immediately upon finding out what was wrong, I was offered the opportunity by Coach Wiskus to manage the JV volleyball team, as we both knew I wouldn’t be back any time soon. At first, I was hesitant, telling myself, “Every bounce of every ball in that gym will remind me of what I don’t get to be a part of,” and, “It’s going to hurt me more than it will help me,” but I was so wrong. I eventually took Coach Wiskus up on her offer, and it was the best decision that I could have made for myself this year.
Getting the opportunity to see the court through a different lens taught me so much. I spent the season with the JV team and realized that I would have majorly missed out, had I not gotten to know these girls better and been there with them through their undefeated season. I met underclassmen that I wouldn’t have become friends with had I not decided to do the uncomfortable thing.
While also managing, I continued my involvement in our Dowling school newspaper, The Dowling Catholic Post. This helped me discover my passion for photography which led me to several opportunities to photograph the varsity volleyball team. I was also asked to take pictures on the court at state, which was a day I will never forget. Through the lenses of a camera, I was able to sit on the sidelines and capture so many different important moments to these girls; from the digs, sets, and kills, to the celebrations and the huddles, to the highs and the lows.
Spending the day at state and taking photos of the girls, the crowd, and the student section, I got to experience “game day” differently than I’d ever experienced it before (photo gallery below).
I was very disheartened this summer when I found out that I would have to stop playing volleyball, and I am forever grateful for all of these girls who still helped me to be a part of the family, just in a different light.
Dowling Catholic’s girls volleyball team had a season record of 32-8, ranked #1 in our conference. Our girls made it to the championship round, becoming #2 in the whole state. This is a huge achievement, and farther than we’ve come in a while. They wanted to go all the way, but some unfortunate obstacles kept this from happening. These girls are so proud and they are not letting their loss define them, as they WILL be back next year, bigger and better. And hey, #2 in the state is pretty darn good… Go Maroons!
