In 2018-19, the Mountain East Conference began its "Dear Sport" initiative where student-athletes in the conference were encouraged to write a letter to their sport. The initiative provides the opportunity for student-athletes to express in their own words the impact that sports has played in shaping them throughout their lives.
Click here to view all letters posted throughout the year.
Below is a letter from Tabi Pontious, a sophomore volleyball player from West Virginia State.
Dear Volleyball,
It’s crazy to think that just 8 short years ago, I bought my first pair of bulky knee pads, ankle braces, and colorful volleyball shoes to try out for the 7th grade team. I had played multiple sports growing up, soccer, softball, basketball, and even rodeo(!), but the only reason I was giving you a shot was because I did not make the cheer team. I remember practicing my toe touches in the living room the day before tryouts, with the ambition of cheering alongside my best friend. The day of cheer tryouts had finally come and I thought I nailed all my jumps and moves, I thought I was a shoe-in for sure.
I was the last person called after anxiously waiting an hour, and when the cheer coach and athletic director called me in they handed me a piece of paper, I assumed it was all the details of the travel schedule and games. But, lo and behold, it was a 7th-grade tryout waiver for you, volleyball. They told me that I needed to play a sport and that tryouts for you were the next day.
Initially, my heart was crushed. I had no clue how I was going to tell my friends and family that I didn’t make the cheer team. After I told my parents, I saw a smile that would light up a room from my mother, a former college volleyball player. I went to tryouts for you the next day and met a bunch of new people and found a new passion.
From our middle school games, high school games, club tournaments, beach tournaments, and now the collegiate game, you are what has made me into the person I am today. You taught me to be unique, just as you are being the one sport in the world in which one or two players on a single team can wear a different jersey while playing. Paving a path for friendships to develop, teaching me leadership skills, and goal setting, you have guided me to a bright future. You have made my dreams a reality, you have driven me to a college where I can excel in wishful pursuit of being a doctor, and you have impacted my life more than words can explain. As my last few seasons with you are gradually coming to an end, I will never lose sight of how you made me into the competitive and passionate person that I am.
Love always,
Tabi