More Than a Feeling: Teammates*

"Sports doesn’t build character, it reveals it.” – John Wooden

Great players who are "bad teammates" simply don't exist. We remember great teams as special units, not one or two players acting independently.

Melrose volleyball earned its reputation through consistent excellence. The Lady Raiders won three consecutive Division II North titles and went to the state championship in 2005, and won the MIAA Coaches’ Sportsmanship Award in 2004. The past three seasons the team has again advanced to the D2 North finals, extending the run of Division II North final appearances to six. Expectations remain high. It's never easy.

Girls learn volleyball skills earlier each year, and prepare for the opportunity just to become part of the program. The competition doesn’t end with selection. Everyone wants not only to be on the team, but contribute on the floor. Players sacrifice time and freedoms that classmates do not; players meet drug and alcohol abstinence standards and are role models for young girls in the state's second smallest city.

Coaches Celli and Wall introduce expectations annually to set the tone for players and parents. Participation fees make it more difficult, as fees help defray expenses, but don't guarantee playing time.

The coaches explain how players can contribute through determined practice, exemplary attitude, and of course, demonstration of improving skills. They let players know that they will earn playing time in varying degrees according to their progress. Not everyone will play as much as they would like. The ultimate goal is having a winning team, playing to its potential. Understandably, players and parents often find this difficult.

“The race doesn’t always go to the swiftest or the battle to the strongest, but it pays to bet that way.”

Although many players have earned attention locally and some regionally, few have accomplished more than a girl who played years ago- being a great teammate. She wasn’t the star of the team. She often played only late in games after the outcome was decided. She came to practice every day, practiced hard, and became the best she could be. She knew she wouldn’t be in the game at the big moments, while younger, less experienced athletes would be. She accepted this because she valued being part of the team and contributing however she could. Her best friend, Marianne Foley, became an All-Scholastic in 2003, while she cheered and supported the team. Both shared Melrose's first Division II North volleyball championship, on a team that went 22-2 and came within a point of going to the state championship, losing to the ultimate champions, Marlborough. And everyone remembers Danielle Burke as a great teammate, a part of Melrose volleyball history.

*Modified from a previous article on this site.