The best thing to happen to Alaina Marolt back in grade nine may have been getting cut from the junior girls volleyball team at Collège Notre Dame. Four years later and four inches taller, the now 17 year old senior is part of the first recruiting class that the Sault College Cougars have seen in some 15 years or so as the crew make their re-appearance in the OCAA next fall.
“I decided to work harder, spent a lot of time training and developing my vertical to make sure that I could really own the net,” noted the member of both the CND Alouettes senior team as well as the Northern Chill 18U Avalanche. “And it helped that I grew.”
With that growth came some exposure at middle, though the past couple of seasons have seen a switch to right side, a bonus for Marolt when it came to the recruitment process. “It helped show that I am versatile, that you can put me anywhere and I can figure it out,” she said.
Positionally speaking, Marolt is enjoying the challenge.
“The biggest difference is that I get to pass, get to play defensively,” she explained. “I also get a longer angle to attack. There are various different shots that I can play now.”
With some family connections that are garduates of the school, Marolt enjoyed of comfort in knowing that she was making the right decision when it came to the next stop in her athletic journey.
"It was one of the first places to show interest," explained the young woman who will study Business Accounting next year. "When I went down to train in July, it solidified in my mind that it was a great fit."
With the Steel City Ignite beginning to make some noise on the OVA (Ontario Volleyball Association) club circuit and founder / coach / technical director Becky Grisdale welcomed as the woman in charge of guiding the incoming volleyball talent at Sault College, the Cougars have confirmed a mix of recruits from both the north and elsewhere in the province.
The team will compete in the OCAA West Division, along with both the Cambrian Shield and the Collège Boréal Vipères, beginning next October.
