Posted by Terry White on July 25, 2009 | No Comments
From today’s Warsaw (IN) Times-Union:
Grace Spikers On A Mission
Anthony Gadson, Sports Writer
WINONA LAKE, Ind. – The Grace College volleyball team is proving its school is about more than just athletics.
Leaving for the Dominican Repulic today, the Lady Lancers will not only face the country’s national squad, but will also face some of the country’s hardships.
“At Grace, all students, not just athletes, are asked to have a cross-culture experience once in their four years,” second-year coach Andria Harshman said. “Being an athlete, it’s hard to find time to do it. During this time in the year, we do have the time, and we’re just trying to help in some way.”
After arriving in the Dominican Republic, the girls will be joined by Malone University, out of Ohio, to face the Dominican national team. Outside of that, the girls will be in the community, working with the people until they return Aug. 2.
“Every other year, we try to do missions work,” Harshman said. “We’ve been setting this up for a long time. We’ve worked with Score International, and are set to play against (the Dominican’s) international team. We’ll also be doing missions work in orphanges and also working in a sugar cane field.”
The team began raising money in January, with many of the players raising the necessary $1,500 needed for the trip. Others may have had to chip in some of their own money, but according to Harshman, it’s money well spent.
“It’s good for the girls to see different cultures,” she said. “It’s exciting to see what they come away with it. They’ll be working in slums, seeing people living in cardboard boxes with not a lot, but they’re happy with what they have. It’s exciting to see how they’ll handle it and how they’ll react.”
From an athletic perspective, Harshman expects the trip to bring together a team that went 3-15 last year.
“We’re young,” Harshman, who had nine freshmen on the team last year, said. “This year, we have seven freshmen and seven sophomores. No juniors or seniors, so this will be a bonding experience.”
“Right now, they’re young and have no fear yet,” she added. “They’re eager and they want to play.”
The team opens its season Aug. 21 in the Grace Classic, which will be a round-robin tournament at the Orthopaedic Capital Center featuring Huntington, Cedarville, IU-Southeast and IU-East.
However, prior to that, the girls will take a plane out of Indianapolis to Newark, N.J., before heading south to the Dominican Republic. From there, Harshman, along with fellow chaperones Jon and LuAnn Parker, will be in charge of watching over the girls.
“I’m six months pregnant, so they may need to chaperone me,” Harshman said.
And she wouldn’t be the only person the girls are looking after during their stay.
