Tawa at Triple Crown NIT: So grateful to be back and reconnect in the club volleyball gym

Grateful.

As I enter Day 3 at the Triple Crown NIT in Kansas City, I find myself overcome with gratitude.

It’s been more than three years since I’ve been “in the gym,” but the last 48 hours at Triple Crown have taught me that you never really leave.

I’ve been traveling to big tournaments for nearly 22 years and have never felt more loved than I have in the past couple of days. At every turn at the convention center in KC, there was a friend “welcoming me back” to volleyball (even though I’m not really back and never really left) after a COVID-sparked hiatus from the sport.

So, in the style of “Romper Room” (yes I am that old), I want to peer through the Looking Glass to acknowledge just a few of the folks who made me feel grateful to be in a place that’s felt like home for the better part of two decades.

First, I am grateful for Tempe head coach Linda Hampton-Keith and TCU head coach Jason Williams for chauffeuring me from my airport hotel to the convention center 20 minutes away. Volleyball is a community of great people and their selflessness in coming to get me and the fellowship we shared on our travels are deeply appreciated.

I am grateful to Andy Halaz of Missouri S&T for sharing perspectives on life and family. Likewise to Kyle Robinson of Quinnipiac, Jason Mansfield at Washington, Jeff Hulsemeyer at Florida State and Stanford’s Kevin Hambly.

I was embraced by former Penn State legend Russ Rose (serving as an assistant coach this weekend for Fight Club), told how much I was missed by Pitt’s Kellen Petrone and enjoyed deep philosophical conversations with Florida coach Mary Wise and Villanova boss man Josh Steinbach.

My good friend Shannon Wells, the newish Virginia head coach: and I talked about buying homes and wandering the sacred grounds at UVa, where I attended law school (wahoowa). New (and new again) LSU coaches Tonya Johnson, Jill Wilson and I chatted about minority participation in the sport and how good friends and old food go naturally together (hello Fran Flory!). Brown coach Ahen Kim and I spent time talking about how he helped reshape Bear volleyball, Yale coach Erin Appleman and my original OG, Kevin Laseau, the associate head coach there; chatted about family and being lifers in the sport.

Branden Higa of Cal Baptist and I ruminated on how many people we know (and how sometimes we forget we know them). I did the same thing with What’s his Name from Cal, the guy who was part of NorCal VBC (what’s his name, again?) Sam Crosson (THAT’S his name!).

I can keep going and will: there was Kaitlin Nielsen at Kansas, who’s loving Midwest hospitality; and Shaun Kupferberg, who’s doing amazing things at Howard. Charita Stubbs is still doing her thing after all these years at Arizona, while Taylor Hildebrand and Cursty LeRoux at Long Beach State, Kyle Luongo and Morgan Thomas at TCU, Leah Johnson at Michigan State, Rachel Morris at Indiana and Jordan Larsen at Texas are getting their feet wet in new places.

Georgia Tech’s Arielle Wilson and Louisville’s Dani Busboom Kelly are looking forward to being mothers (and looking fabulous). Tori Mellinger is toting around a youngster, just like UCF’s Jen Maurer used to do back when she was a coach in the Patriot League (her daughter suffered a soccer injury yesterday…thinking of you!).

That’s my point. At every turn, there was a friend, asking about me and my family, talking about theirs. It felt so good to be in a place that felt so familiar, comfortable chaos if you will.

Time’s running out, as Williams, my ride or die, will soon be picking me up. Here are other who greeted me warmly: Washington’s Keegan Cook, Colorado’s Jesse Mahoney and Lee Maes (who used to write for me at Student Sports waaay back when), Mike Johnson of Stanford, Matt Ulmer and Erika Chidester of Oregon, Clemson’s Jackie Simpson-Kirr, UCSB’s Nicole Lantagne Welch, Dave Shondell at Purdue, Steve Aird of Indiana, Trav Green at Mississippi State, Joe Sagula and Mick Schall at UNC, Colorado State’s Emily Kohan, Scott Wong at Pepperdine, Lipscomb mentor Brandon Rosenthal, Illinois’ Chris Tamas, Houston’s David Rehr, Michigan’s Mark Rosen, Kelly Hunter of Nebraska, Adam Hughes at Maryland, Jen Malcolm at Iowa State, Kaleo Baxter of the Rainbow Wahine,  Maggie Couture at Jacksonville, Molly Alvery at Cincinnati, Tennessee’s Eve Rackham, Wichita’s State Chris Lamb, Kentucky’s Craig Skinner, North Florida’s Kristen Wright, Ed Tolentino at Xavier, Wake Forest’s Jake Hong and Rebecca Rudnick-Hong and, of course, my great friend Josh Lauer at Troy. I am grateful to each and every one of you and to all the other college coaches I forgot to mention.

I also am grateful for the warm receptions I received from those in the club world, like Andy Guggisberg at Northern Lights, Dave Johnson at KC Power, Terri Spann of AZ Storm, Kelly Crowley of Tri-State Elite, Trent Tcheng of SG Elite, A5’s Gabe Aramian, Beth Nuneville of Aspire, Sunshine’s Katie Charles and untold others. I so enjoyed spending time with Eric and Vicky Swenson, volleyball parents (and coaches) at MN Select and sharing hugs with the likes of Joy McKienzie-Fuerbringer of Mizuno Loong Beach, LJ Sariego at TAV, Mitch and Jen Woods of Houston Skyline, Jason Nicholson at Drive Nation and on and on and on.

Thanks to you and to the hundreds more who have made this weekend so very memorable.

I must go now; it’s time to prepare for the final day, when eight teams still in contention for the title in each age group will battle for the right to be regarded at the Best of the Best. It’s so much fun to watch the effort and see the smiles of success. I am grateful to witness it, surrounded by people who have become my family for the past 22 years.

Editor’s note: It was also the first time editor Lee Feinswog and John Tawa were together in more than two years, and we’re grateful for that, too:

PLEASE JOIN THE TEAM!
Keep free volleyball journalism free by becoming a VolleyballMag.com Sustaining Member:  https://volleyballmag.com/sustaining-membership/  
Or make a contribution through Venmo @VolleyballMag 

The post Tawa at Triple Crown NIT: So grateful to be back and reconnect in the club volleyball gym appeared first on Volleyballmag.com.