Volleyball
Favorite athlete: I can't think of any!
Favorite team: Any of the big 10 NCAA college volleyball teams have been my favorite to watch throughout the years.
Favorite memory competing in sports: Being able to travel to so many new places with my best friends. The best part about volleyball tournaments, besides playing volleyball, is being able to share hotel rooms with my friends. Watching movies, doing homework we missed from being out of school for volleyball, and endless laughs over stupid things we do or say throughout the day have been my favorite parts of volleyball for the last seven years.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: The only thing I can think of is when I ran into a ref stand going for a ball, or when I was line judging a game and all the parents were yelling at me to make different calls because I didn’t know what I was doing.
Music on my playlist: I honestly have such a wide range of music I listen to, but my go-to pregame hype-up artist would have to be Drake. When I'm not playing volleyball, Daniel Ceasar and SZA are my go-to’s.
Future plans: I will be continuing to play volleyball at the next level at Rowan University and plan to enroll in a five-year master's program for history education. In the future, I want to be a high school history teacher and would love to be able to coach volleyball as well.
Words to live by: One of my closest friends told me almost four years ago that if it's not going to matter in 5 years, why be worried and focus on it now? This little saying has not only helped me learn how to move on from a mistake in volleyball and not get down on myself during a game but also it has changed my overall mindset of focusing on the negative things that really won't matter in the future.
One goal before turning 30: One goal I have is to travel to new places while I am still able to. I want to learn about different cultures in other parts of the world and see beautiful scenes in real life instead of on my phone screen. I would love to visit all the states, then make my way to Europe to explore there.
One thing people don’t know about me: I love animals, and for the longest time, my dream was to work in a marine animal rehabilitation center in Hawaii.
By GORDON GLANTZ
Born in an athletic family of tall people, Natalie Johnson was pretty much given an ultimatum at age 11.
“Like every other younger girl, I was a dancer,” said Johnson. “My parents were, like, ‘Um, No.’ I was going to be over 6-feet tall and I had to play either basketball or volleyball. I chose volleyball, and I haven’t stopped since.”
Her dad, David, reached 6-5 and played football at the collegiate level at Bloomsburg. Younger brother, Grant, is already 6-3 at 14 years of age and is primarily a hoopster.
Though 6-1 and already committed to play at the next level for Rowan University, Johnson now finds herself following in the footsteps of her mom, Jennifer, and playing the role of cheerleader at the same school, Pennsbury.
That is because she sustained a horrific knee injury – a torn meniscus – in a car accident last April, just one month after making her college choice with the hope she could focus on her senior season without the recruiting process hanging over her head.
“At first, I wasn’t completely aware of the extent of my injury,” said Johnson. “I was told I had an MCL sprain and a bone bruise and that I was going to play through that. Then, when I found out that I tore my meniscus, it was one of the hardest things I have ever heard. You look forward to your senior year for so long. Knowing that I wasn’t going to have that, it was crushing.
“It took a little bit for me to get over the initial hurt of not being able to play. Once I was able to put it into the bigger picture, I was able to see some positives in it.”
And the positives have been being the best teammate she can be.
“Oh my gosh, it’s been extremely frustrating,” said Johnson. “All I want to do is play, but it’s been fun to still support my team and come to everything.
“I have been looking forward to it for so long, and now I couldn’t enjoy it the way I wanted to, but I have found other ways to still have fun. I’m showing up for my friends and making up new goofy cheers on the bench and getting everyone hyped up for the games.”
Beating Heart
For first-year coach Bob Burns, who had admired Johnson from afar as the JV coach and was counting down the days until he could officially coach her this season, the torn MCL was an almost equally crushing blow.
However, he has been inspired by the way she has handled the difficult situation.
“She was going to be a huge piece of our team this year as a four-year varsity starter,” he said. “I was JV coach last year, and we would always see and hear her. And, you know, there were times when she got pulled for not playing well or whatever, but that never changed her approach. She was still positive and still cheering on her teammates. She was just being the best version of whatever she needed to be at the time.”
While the Falcons are in the midst of a strong season, he has been overwhelmed by her generosity of spirit.
“Even with all this, it should be hard for someone in this position to have any positive energy, after having lost out on her most important year,” he said. “But, she just comes out for every match and is the loudest person. She’s supporting all of her teammates and has everybody’s back. When people are having a tough time, or get pulled or whatever, she is right there to give them a pep talk.
“I told her just a couple of weeks ago that she is like the beating heart of our team. “Her positive energy radiates throughout the whole team. That just defines her. It’s contagious.”
Curtain Call
On Senior Night, a prior arrangement with Abington allowed for Johnson to serve for an ace before being pulled.
“It was just one serve, but I was so grateful to still get into a game,” said Johnson, who thanked both Burns and assistant coach Paige Dewitt for making her feel a part of the team this year.
Now, it’s back to PT with the goal of playing for the Princeton Volleyball Club in the upcoming rigorous travel season.
“It is going really well,” said Johnson, who singled out “Coach Y” (Nancy Yasalonis) for her longtime support, at both the club and school levels. “I’m almost done soon. It took a lot of physical therapy to get myself back into shape.”
Johnson said she was sold on Rowan’s program by its coach, Deana Jespersen, who has remained supportive through what could have been a stressful time.
“It’s been my dream to play at the next level since I started playing,” said Johnson. “Even though I don’t get to play my senior year, I’m still looking forward to my freshman year at Rowan.
“I wanted to commit before my senior year. That was always a goal of mine, to not have to worry about the whole recruiting process. I didn’t expect to commit when I did, but I just loved the coach so much that I said, ‘This is where I want to go to school.’”
Johnson said Jespersen is next in a long line of supportive coaches.
“My college coach has been amazing, in terms of making me feel unafraid of my freshman year,” said Johnson. “She has let me know how good their trainers are there and has assured me that I will be perfectly good to go my freshman year.
“I’m pretty thankful that I didn’t have to go through an injury while still being recruited.”
Johnson, who holds down a solid 3.5 GPA and plans on being a high school history teacher, also enjoys coaching/mentoring younger players.
That goes right along with her career aspirations.
“I have always wanted to be a teacher, because I knew I wanted to do something that would have a positive impact on people,” said Johnson, whose extracurricular activities include German Club, Art Committee for Sports Night and Mini-THON. “I chose history because I love the subject and learning about it.”
Moving forward, Johnson seems to have the twists and turns of her challenging journey in proper perspective.
“I’m definitely going to miss it,” she said of Pennsbury. “I think that not being able to play my senior season has made it harder. I wanted that closure. While I’m definitely going to miss it, I’m also really excited to be able to continue playing. So many people don’t ever get that opportunity, so I’m really thankful for that.
“Every day, I still wish that I could be out there on the court, but I have accepted it. I’m ready to just keep doing what I’m doing all season, which is cheering on my team and being there for them whenever I can. Hopefully, they can feel me on the court while I’m on the bench.”
