My Favorite College Memories

In eight short days, I will be receiving my diploma from Ohio Northern University and beginning the next chapter in my life. ONU has provided me with an abundance of memories and knowledge that I will never forget. For my last required blog post, I decided to take a trip down memory lane to recap some of the great times I had as a polar bear in the past four years.



1. The Armory. My first two years in Ada, the Armory was open and that establishment provided me with many fun nights. The Armory had a huge dance floor and often had live bands. I remember sneaking in most of the time so I did not have to pay the five dollars for cover (#cheap). I will never forget the nights I had at the Armory dancing the night away with my closest friends.


2. SAAC Dances. Where do I even begin to describe the wonderful times at SAAC dances? Let’s just say, the volleyball team knows how to have a good time. The food was always delicious and I remember plopping a ridiculous amount of cheesy potatoes on my plate. If you want to see a picture of me in my prime, just look at a picture of me from any SAAC dance.


3. Volleyball. Deciding to play volleyball in college was one of the best decisions I have made in my lifetime. My teammates are the best and made my four years of collegiate volleyball very enjoyable. Being able to experience the final four my sophomore year is one of my greatest memories. Go Bears!


4. 218 E. University Ave. Living off campus my senior year was incredible. I felt so free and like a big girl living on my own. The parties and small gatherings we threw at our house were always so much fun and I will definitely miss this house.


5. The Beagle. I can’t talk about my favorite memories of Ada without mentioning the Beagle! The Beagle is where I have spent every single weekend of my junior and senior year. The Beagle was always followed by a trip to McDonalds, which was just as fun. One of the things I will miss most about Ada is being able to walk everywhere and the Beagle was definitely a good walking distance from my house.


I hope my readers and fellow Polar Bears enjoyed this post. To my graduating seniors, I will miss you all so much as we go different ways in our life. To the juniors, make the most of your last year in Ada because your college career will be done before you know it! Peace out Ada.

Podcast - Recruiting With Coach Witte

 Joe Clarkson and I met with ONU's very own Coach Witte to discuss the ins and outs of the recruiting process for D3 volleyball programs. Coach Witte does an excellent job of incorporating social media tactics that are involved in recruitment into our discussion. She gives advice to high school athletes looking to play sports in college and how they can be marketable. Coach told Joe and I how the recruiting process has evolved and how the process will change even more for the future. We end this podcast with an outlook for the 2011 Polar Bear Volleyball Season.

Listen to our podcast!

Volleyballin

Some people play sports in college, some join sororities or fraternities, some choose to solely focus on academics, and some get involved in different clubs and organizations. I am the first - a college athlete. Playing volleyball in college was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

I was unsure at first whether I wanted to play volleyball at a DIII school or go to a large state school. I did know if I played I wanted to go DIII because I didn’t want volleyball to completely take over my life and I wanted more time to visit with friends and do homework, but DIII athletics also have that very competitive feel. After visiting ONU, meeting the team and coaches, and seeing the facilities, I had to come here to play my favorite sport.

Throughout my four years as a college volleyball player, I have experienced both successes and failures as an individual and as a team. The success that our team experienced my sophomore year was beyond amazing. We beat two very good teams in intense battles at the NCAA Regionals and ended up going all the way to the final four in Illinois. Our team got to attend a banquet with the other seven teams that got to the elite eight, complete with delicious food and a chocolate fountain (my favorite thing ever). But the best experience was getting recognized for being one of the top eight DIII teams in the country.

Sophomore year was filled with great accomplishments, but the other three years were just as good to me. Though the honors I have received through the years mean a lot to me, being on the court in front of our many awesome fans and family was so exhilarating. I loved the feeling of nervous excitement before every serve and pure joy getting the winning kill.

The friendships and memories I have made by being a part of the ONU volleyball family will stay with me forever. Being done with college volleyball is definitely a weird feeling, but I won’t stop doing what I love because my career is over. I will continue playing in open gyms, intramurals and leagues at home.  

Sophomore year - Alex and I with our trophy after beating WashU in the NCAA Regional Finals