National Capitals Volleyball - A New Era for Volleyball in Ottawa

July 16, 2007 - I can't believe it; the year has gone by in the blink of an eye! It seems like it was just yesterday I entered the Pius gym for 16U Girls tryouts and someone wrote "M4" on my right leg. In my head I was thinking, "why am I here?" Today I can think of a million reasons but, most importantly, I was there for the love of the game and for the great times to come.

CAPS volleyball changed my life and my high school journey. It all went by so fast, next thing I knew, I was at the beginning of my last 18U year with the CAPS. I knew that it would be the best year because of the confidence I gained that summer playing with Team Ontario. I also knew it would be the hardest one because I had to finally choose where I would attend university for the following year. Decisions! Decisions! Decisions! There were many questions to answer, because I wanted the both of best worlds: a great academic school with a great and challenging volleyball program.

The search started at the beginning of the year when I and two of my teammates, Katee Luecke and Stephanie McGuinty asked Coach Cathy if we could take a little trip down to the states to see our options. That weekend we were lucky to travel with Luke Luecke to three schools that played in three different divisions. We first went to see a game from the NCAA's Patriot League - Colgate University Raiders versus the American University Eagles. Then we saw a game featuring Big East schools, Syracuse University Orangemen against the Marquette University Golden Eagles, finishing off with an America East battle between the Binghamton University Bearcats and the UMBC (University of Maryland, Baltimore Campus) Retrievers. All of them seemed great and very interesting; I knew that I would definitely look at the opportunities, if they came along. I was also interested in schools in Canada. I really liked the schools in Ontario such as the University of Toronto, York University, University of Ottawa and others. I also looked into Dalhousie University and did some research on the University of British Columbia. Everything looked great, I was getting more impressed with every enquiry I made.

After attending both the Martin Luther King Jr. Kick-off Classic in Philadelphia and the Capitol Hill Volleyball Classic in Washington D.C., I knew I had to start making decisions. I was lucky to have a great coaching team there talking to different coaches and giving them my profile. I was constantly checking my email and trying to make up my mind. My work load in grade 12 was sometimes more then I could handle, but I knew that picking a university had to be one of my top priorities.

My first official visit was to James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, USA. This school is in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) conference. Arriving to the campus, the air smelt great and the people were welcoming. Meeting with Coach Disa Garner and assistant coaches Kerri-Ann Grosso and Chuck Amshoff, I knew that this school had struck my interest. This university also had a great program for Mass Communication and Visual Media & Design. It was exactly what I was looking for. The team was friendly and the campus was beautiful.

On my way back home, I knew I had a lot to think about. I had everyone's opinion in my mind, telling me which one would be best for me, and I was greatly appreciative of the comments because I knew they were trying to help. Canadian schools were always a great option because it was close to home and I would be playing with some of my old teammates. They also all had great academics, but I wanted something different. I was ready for a change. I went on other trips, but JMU seemed to always be the one for me. So, after my visits were done, I decided that James Madison University was the school for me! Adding my signature to the letter of intent, I knew it was the right decision. I am very happy and excited to be heading out to university because I know that I have a great team behind me, who make me never want me to forget where I come from.

I would just like to point out an important fact for those who will be making future university or college decisions. In the end, you have to be happy with the decision you make because you are going to be the one attending the school. I would like to thank my family for always trying to seek what is best for me and the National Capitals Volleyball Club - especially my coaching team of Cathy O'Doherty and Matt Harris - for pushing me beyond my limits and to my team for always rocking the court. It's been a pleasure.

GO CAPS GO!

- Jessica Zéroual