Alumni volleyball game reunites former athletes
By Kadin Pounders
Former RHS volleyball players involved in this year’s alumni game were (back row, left to right) Tiffany Watkins, Lindsey Southerland, Jordan Dollar, Jessica Richey, Lindsey Mims and Carmen Poss with Coach Charlotte Dollar, and (front row, left to right) Cassie Montgomery, Jasmine Buckhalter, Mercedes Darby, Janae Dollar and Darryl Gardner.
By Kadin Pounders
For the FCT
How many people wish they could go back and live through their “glory days” of high school again? To this point, no time machine exists that allows anyone to do that; however, a group of Russellville High School alumni were able to go back in time, figuratively, if only for a few hours.
On Thursday night over a dozen former Russellville volleyball players gathered at the Russellville Middle School for an alumni volleyball game.
“Each year we try to have an alumni volleyball game. This year I think we had 14 former players to play,” said Russellville head volleyball coach Charlotte Dollar. “The alumni just come out and have a good time.”
The women split into two teams and played a few friendly matches against each other before the group got together to play against Russellville’s current varsity team.
Tiffany Watkins, a 2007 graduate of Russellville, has been involved each of the five years this event has been held.
“I just like to play and I miss playing. That’s why I like it,” she said. “I think we have those thoughts, ‘Are we going to be able to get out of bed in the morning?’ but it’s not that bad. I enjoy playing, and I know all the other girls out here do too.”
The night was not only a fun opportunity for alumni to get together again; it was also a chance for current Russellville volleyball players to scrimmage in front of a crowd.
“It gives our younger players a chance to get some game-like experience before the season starts and it gives the young officials that have never called a volleyball game before some experience too,” said Dollar.
Dollar plans to continue having the alumni match each year and said she hopes more and more former players will come back to participate.
