The Hillsdale College volleyball team will host their spring alumnae round robin tournament in the Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena on Saturday.
Hillsdale has been hosting the alumnae tournament on and off for the past twenty years. This year, however, saw an increase in the amount of alumnae interested in playing. Enough former players committed to playing in the tourney that two alumnae teams were formed rather than the traditional single team.
“There is an old team and then an older team,” Coach Gravel said.
The two teams deemed themselves “Mall Walkers” and “Older, Slower, Lower.”
In addition to the alumnae teams and the current Hillsdale team, the University of Findlay will bring two squads to the tournament and Western Ontario University’s team will also participate.
Hillsdale volleyball alumna and All-American Melissa Bartlett ’08 is the head coach at Western Ontario.
“It is nice to see former players still have the technique and good habits that they created here when they were players,” Gravel said. “They like to complain and tell stories of how hard it was back then, but the skills stuck.”
The overwhelming interest that former players have shown to return and play on Saturday speaks to the strength of the Charger volleyball program that Coach Gravel and his assistants have built, senior Meagan McPhetridge said.
“Coach and Steph have built an amazing program where alums are super eager to stay involved and come back anytime,” McPhetridge said.
The transition between being a current player and alumna can be very strange, McPhetridge said.
“As graduating seniors, the actual realization that our career as volleyball players is over doesn’t really start to sink in until winter and spring season. Being able to get back and play competitively with and against teammates is amazing,” McPhetridge said. “All the alums of the program are super excited to have another opportunity to get together and play at a high level. It’ll be great to catch up with teammates from past seasons and exciting to play against the current team.”
The Hillsdale alumnae team won the tournament last year, so the stakes are higher for the current Chargers.
“It’s just fun. There is more pressure this year since the alums won last year,” junior Haylee Booms said. “But it is very cool to see the players that we see pictures on the wall in the office and hear stories about come to life.”
In addition to this year’s tournament, there will be a reception introducing the alumnae to the new Hall of Fame room in the sports complex. The reception will host alumnae and current players and their families, plus a few recruits.
Coach Gravel described the reception as a really unique way for the Hillsdale volleyball families, past and present, to get to know each other.
But while the reception is meant for fraternizing, Gravel is serious about the current Chargers winning the tournament.
“We are going to win,” Gravel determined.
The tournament starts at 10:30 a.m. and admission is free.