When I first touched a volleyball seven years ago, I immediately knew I wanted to play the sport in college. This past March, I committed to Elon University to continue my academic career and play D1 volleyball.
The most common reaction I get when sharing my commitment is, “Wow, you’re so lucky! You’re a junior that doesn’t need to worry about college applications next fall!” While I am immensely thankful that I won’t labor over deciding which colleges to apply to, there is so much more that went into my process that parallels the traditional one. For volleyball, Division I college coaches can begin recruiting conversations with prospective student-athletes on June 15, the summer after their sophomore year of high school. Even before then, athletes can send emails relaying their interest to the school even though coaches can not respond.
For me, I found sending emails to be the most effective way of getting my name out. Even though I play for a highly competitive club team, being able to articulate the reasons why I was interested in a program through my writing cultivated a connection before I could even talk face-to-face with coaches. Be sure that any email you send is genuine, as in you can get some help from your parents, but the ideas articulated should come from you! In those emails, I worked hard to make sure I had updated video of me playing so that coaches wouldn’t need to ask for footage further down the road.
The coaches you have throughout your athletic career are a resource too. I made sure to notify my club director and head coaches about my timeline so that they could be there to talk to coaches if need be.
In all, being true to yourself and who you are when talking to coaches is the most important aspect of the recruitment process. In understanding what you are looking for in a school, whether it be a certain region of the country, academic rigor, or a specific community nearby the campus, you are able to find your niche, narrowing the number of coaches you could reach out to. When you are able to talk directly to coaches, even though it can be awkward at times, it’s crucial that you continue to be yourself, whether it be cracking corny jokes that only you laugh at or sharing stories about experiences in your sport community. Afterall, coaches aren’t just recruiting an athlete, but also a person.
August 1 leading into a student-athlete’s junior year marks the first day that volleyball recruits can make official visits. Recently, the NCAA changed the number of official visits a recruit can take to unlimited, rather than the previous restriction of five. If the school and program feels right, you only really need to take one official visit!
Many of my club teammates committed to wonderful volleyball programs and schools before I did. While it was stressful watching my peers find their homes, I continued to believe in myself and the work I was putting in on the court. Through it all, I made sure to be there for my friends and celebrate their success because I know how hard they’ve worked and still do for it!
When it came to Elon, I instantly fell in love with the coaching staff, the volleyball team, and the school itself. My family made sure that I weighed my options carefully, but as soon as I stepped foot on campus I knew I had found my home. Go Phoenix!
