On Tuesday, April 21, 2015, William Tennent seniors Jaime Bonner, Cassie McCarney, Maddie Richard, Amber Wood and Catherine Zhushma were recognized at a special celebration for committing to play volleyball at the collegiate level. To view photos of the event, please visit the Photo Gallery at the following link: http://photos.suburbanonesports.com/g/042115_signings_mjs#l_img_1897_59_1_11
“It was a pretty amazing run with these guys,” coach Brian Bassler said. “The senior class – they’re going to be very sorely missed. We’re still searching for the leadership they provided. They knew the game, they loved the game, and they lived to play volleyball.
“That was really neat to see, and it was contagious. It was a very hard transition because we had the three injuries this year to all three captains (Jaime Bonner, Maddie Richard and Amber Wood). We had two ACL tears and Maddie sprained her ACL, and all of a sudden, we had freshmen and sophomores filling those roles. It wasn’t a natural progression, and it was very difficult, but they were always there like player-coaches, and they continued to be inspirational to the program.
“This (senior class going on to play in college) is something William Tennent really hasn’t had, and it’s really neat to watch this come about. Just the fact that they had such a good experience in high school with the volleyball program to want to play in college is pretty huge, and that really comes from each and every one of them wanting to make each other better. It certainly doesn’t come from me. It comes from them and how they grew together. Our one senior who isn’t playing (Julia Hasiak) is going to Drexel to be a doctor, so I said I’d let her off the hook!”
Jaime Bonner – Holy Family University (Volleyball)
Major: Psychobiology/Pre-Physical Therapy
Final list of colleges: Holy Family, Caldwell, Millersville, West Chester, University of the Sciences
Reasons for choosing Holy Family: “Holy Family has a strong academic program for my major and small class sizes. The volleyball team is really close knit and competitive, and the coaches are great.”
What was the progression that led you to playing volleyball at the collegiate level? “After playing my first year of club in eighth grade, I knew I was going to want to play at the collegiate level. I started playing year-round and never looked back.
“The recruiting process started in my freshman year - my dad started videotaping my games and made a highlight film, and then we started sending them to colleges.”
Coach Brian Bassler says: “Jaime was an outside hitter. She played all the way around. She played at the highest level – she played for Synergy and Infinity. In my opinion, last year she was probably the best player in the Suburban One League. She received basically a full scholarship to Holy Family, and she’s going to play with ‘CC’ (Tennent alum Cecilia Weir).
“Jaime had a great jump serve, and in my opinion, she was the hardest hitter in the league. We were 6-0 before she tore her ACL in the middle of the match against CB West, and from that point, we went 3-13, which tells you everything you need to know. We had lost Amber (Wood) in August, and we still were undefeated. We beat Council Rock North in the first match, and that was all Jaime – she had 20-some kills in that match and was virtually unstoppable.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing her play at Holy Family and come back from all this and be that dominant player again. She’s the type of kid – we would run camps, and I wouldn’t even need to come in as the director. She was running the entire thing. All the players looked up to her, all the kids from the elementary and middle schools – they thought she was a coach. Anything you ever needed from a player, that was her.”
About Jaime:
Favorite food: Sushi
Favorite movie: Bridesmaids
Favorite music: Country
Amber Wood – Bryn Athyn College (Volleyball)
Major: Early Childhood Education
Final list of colleges: Bryn Athyn, Arcadia, Juniata
Reasons for choosing Bryn Athyn: “I wanted to play volleyball and be close to home.”
What was the progression that led you to playing volleyball at the collegiate level? “I started thinking about playing in college the summer after eighth grade at the Juniata volleyball camp. I like volleyball and didn’t want the last time I played to be me getting hurt.”
Coach Brian Bassler says: “Amber was pretty close to Jaime in having a coach on the floor, in having somebody that cared about her teammates more than herself. Amber got hurt in August the day before tryouts at a camp. Jaime at least got to play Council Rock North and go through some of the season. Amber didn’t get anything of her senior year. On Senior Night, both Jaime and Amber served. It was kind of crazy the way it turned out – Amber served some aces, and Jaime served the game-winning point in the first game on Senior Night. They both missed things they should have had, but the really neat part is they’re both going to play in college.
“Amber was a middle hitter. She was someone who – when she came into the program – we kind of were on the fence about because we weren’t sure what kind of player she would end up being. I think because of her mental toughness and her intelligence and her ability to work hard, she became an all-league player. Amber was voted honorable mention in the Suburban One League this year, and she never even played a game. That tells you what the other coaches thought of her and knew how much she meant to our program and our team. She was a big-time hitter by the time she was a junior, and she was somebody who put the team first. She basically was the team mom.”
About Amber:
Favorite food: Brownie Sundae
Favorite movie: Bridesmaids
Favorite music: Taylor Swift
Maddie Richard – Penn State Abington (Volleyball)
Major: Business
Final list of colleges: Penn State-Abington, Bryn Athyn, Kutztown
Reasons for choosing Penn State-Abington: “It was my favorite school.”
What was the progression that led you to playing volleyball at the collegiate level? “I love volleyball, and I started thinking about playing in college in ninth grade.”
Coach Brian Bassler says: “Jaime (Bonner) was the captain selected by the team, Amber (Wood) was the captain selected by the coaches, and we have a third captain that gets selected basically on how you play in practice, how you play in matches. That became Maddie almost every single time. She was the loudest, she was the most positive, she had the most energy, and she was really somebody that the team started to follow in terms of emotional energy because she provided that. She was our libero – it was not an easy role because she was coming in senior year right after ‘CC’ Weir left. They were big shoes to fill, and she did a great job.”
About Maddie:
Favorite food: Chocolate
Favorite movie: White Chicks
Favorite music: 21 Pilots
Cassie McCarney – Penn State Abington (Volleyball)
Major: Undecided
Final list of colleges: Penn State-Abington, Bloomsburg, West Chester
Reasons for choosing Penn State-Abington: “I heard good things about Abington. It has a small class size and a beautiful campus.”
What was the progression that led you to playing volleyball at the collegiate level? “I wanted to continue playing the sport I love. I started thinking of playing in college in the beginning of junior year. The recruiting process started during my senior season.”
Coach Brian Bassler says: “Cassie was an outside hitter. She was someone who played her first varsity year as a senior. She played three years of jayvee, and after Chelsea Gallagher graduated, Cassie took Chelsea’s place. Cassie and Catherine (Zhushma), along with our setter, Alex (Koppany), were our only players with any experience on the floor. Everyone else was freshmen and sophomores around them. Cassie is a hard worker and one of the nicer girls you’ll meet. She always gave it her all out there on the court.”
About Cassie:
Favorite food: Pasta
Favorite movie: Dirty Dancing
Favorite music: Country
Catherine Zhushma – Penn State Abington (Volleyball)
Major: Athletic Training
Reasons for choosing Penn State-Abington: “The campus is nice, and the classrooms are nice. Also, the feedback from students about teachers was good.”
What was the progression that led you to playing volleyball at the collegiate level? “I wanted to continue playing because I enjoy volleyball, and I started thinking about it the beginning of junior year. The recruiting process started my senior year.”
Coach Brian Bassler says: “Catherine is a really neat story. She also was playing her first varsity experience as a senior. She was a defensive specialist, so she played back row. Doug Blystone from Penn State Abington came out to watch – he already knew about Cassie and had Cassie on his radar. He came out to watch Maddie and loved the way Maddie played, but after the match, he came up to me, and the first person he asked about was Catherine. He said, ‘Who the heck is that? I love the way she plays.’ She was on the floor probably more than she was upright. She dives after everything. She’s a girl that – on her own – would go into the weight room and would just lift and work out nonstop in order to get ready for the season. Her ultimate goal was to play varsity. She was probably someone as a freshman we never thought would play varsity, and she turned into one of the best defensive specialists we’ve had come through the program.”
About Catherine:
Favorite food: Sushi
Favorite movie: Let’s Be Cops
Favorite music: Country/Soft Rock
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