Farewell challenge pitches Chargers against alumni all-stars
December 4, 2007
The Camosun College Chargers will soon be saying farewell to long-time men's volleyball head coach Linda Henderson, but not before they play one last match under her tutelage. Henderson will coach the Chargers for the last time against an All-Star alumni team at 3:30pm on Saturday, December 15 at St. Margaret's School.
Heading up the men's volleyball alumni squad is former 1993-1997 student-athlete and assistant coach – and 2007 Camosun College Most Promising Alumnus award recipient - Scott Thomas. Thomas commented that he offered to coach to avoid having to hit the hard court. "I'll leave the playing to the younger guys with better legs," he said jokingly.
All kidding aside, Thomas recognizes that he will have a lot of talent to help him shape things up on the floor. The alumni team to date includes 2006-07 Canadian Colleges' Athletic Association (CCAA) Scholar Athlete and British Columbia Colleges' Athletic Association (BCCAA) 1st Team All-Star, John Galloway; 2003-04 BCCAA Player of the Year and 1st Team All-Star, Martin Reader; and three-time BCCAA All-Star (1999-2000, 2000-01 & 2001-02) Dan Casey.
Fifth-year Camosun veteran Adam Parkes, who joined the Chargers mid-way through the first half of the 2007-08 season, is looking forward to the event, but feels torn by his alliegance. "I'm not sure if I'll be playing for Camosun or the Alumni … maybe both," remarked Parkes. Parkes and long-time beach partner Dan Casey have shared a successful athletic career, winning the 2004 Volleyball Canada Senior Men's Beach National Championship (Tier II).
Chargers 2006-07 Rookie of the Year, Devon Parkinson will be flying in from Halifax where he is currently a student-athlete at Dalhousie University. Todd Peterson, who played for the Chargers 2002-2004, is also making a special trip from his current home in Northern Alberta to play in the match.
"The response from the alumni has been fantastic, they want to ensure this is a very special event for Linda," reported an organizer from Camosun's Athletics department. "We've got Sean Tassell managing the event information on Facebook, Martin Reader is helping us initiate media coverage and a host of former players have committed to either play in the match, attend as a spectator or contribute in any way they can."
Rounding out the mix for the alumni team are Steve Evans (Walnut Grove, Langley), Sean Tassell (Claremont), John Bomhof (Pacific Christian), Milan Fedor (Slovakia), Jordan Maxwell (Mark Isfeld, Courtenay), Mike Fraser (Oak Bay) and Derek Horton (Claremont).
The Chargers anticipate a big crowd for the event as many members of the Victoria volleyball community will be attending to pay tribute to Henderson and bid her farewell. A farewell presentation will be made following the match, along with a special surprise for the long-time coach.
Contact
Graham Matthews
Recreation and Athletics Coordinator
Phone: 250–370–3601
matthews@camosun.bc.ca
