It has always been my daughter Jessica Wolfenden's assumption that she would play her post-secondary, post-CAPS volleyball in Canada, and preferably close to home.  Over the last season there have been calls, discussions, meetings - even a trip east to explore options.  It seemed everything was falling into place and that Jessica had decided in her mind where she was going to play, and that it would likely be very close to home.

Then, just when you think you know what you are doing and what you want, life passes you a new ball from the sidelines.  Enter Coach Lynn Theehs, head coach of the womens volleyball team at the University of Maine.  Just a few weeks ago, at the Provincial Championships in St. Catharines, we were approached by Lynn with a very interesting proposition.  They were excited to offer Jessica a full athletic scholarship to join the NCAA Division 1 Maine Black Bears.  Wow, we weren't expecting this.  Suddenly all her plans were not quite so set.

Jessica and I went on an exciting road trip to visit the University of Maine, to check out the school, the community, the players, the coaches and, of course, the shopping.  It's a wonderful little city, Orono, just outside Bangor.  The school is great, the country side is beautiful, the players are very friendly, the coaches (Lynn Theehs and Amy Schreiber) are talented and approachable, and the shopping is - well - like mother, like daughter!  We spent a tidy little sum in the few free hours we had before heading home.

It was a difficult week, with lots of tears, trying to decide between Ottawa and Maine.  In the end, my brave little baby girl made the decision to accept the scholarship and join the Maine Black Bears.  I am beyond proud of her, as is her father Dan, her sisters Haley and Kelsey, and of course her sweetie, Matty.  She is, without doubt, going to be a force - albeit a skinny one - on the court, a great student, an incredible friend to all her new teammates, an eminently coachable athlete to her coaches, and a joy to all who meet her.  But I suppose I am a little biased.

The University of Maine competes in the NCAA Division I America East Conference.  They will face teams like the University at Albany, Binghamton University, University of Hartford, University of New Hampshire, Stony Brook University, and the University of Maryland - Baltimore County.  The team also plays in several tournaments, including some that will take Jessica to states she has yet to visit, a big one in Texas that she is particularly excited about.

The Black Bears are coming off a successful season, finishing with an overall record of 19-10, including a 10-4 conference record.  They earned a spot in the conference final, losing in a 5th set tiebreaker to Albany.  Canadians are no strangers to the 10,000 plus student population at the Orono campus or to the womens volleyball team.  The team had 5 Canadians on their squad last year, four from Saskatchewan!  One of the prominent alumni of UMaine is NHL star, Paul Kariya, who helped lead the Black Bears to the NCAA hockey championship in 1991.

Jessica will be studying for a Bachelor of Science, Secondary Education.  She reports to the UMaine campus on August 12th.  She's been assigned a freshman teammate from Virginia as a residence roommate.  The team will train full time for several weeks before school starts in order to be ready for the season that opens with a tournament on Labour Day weekend.

Thank you to Coach Don Costello (Cedarview Middle School), Coach Cathy O'Doherty, Matt Harris and everyone who supported Jessica over the years.  Don't worry, she'll be in touch with everyone throughout the next year.  God Bless MSN!