Jacquie Whittle of Rio Grande (Ohio) Presented with Champions of Character award by University

Freshman volleyball player changes to setter position

Posted on 10.2.07
Submitted by Mark Williams -- Rio Grande Sports Information Director

 

RIO GRANDE, Ohio --- University of Rio Grande freshman volleyball player Jacquie Whittle was presented with a Champions of Character award from the university, for her willingness to sacrifice personal success for the betterment of the team.

 

Whittle had just been named the American Mideast Conference Libero of the Week for the week of September 10-16.  She was at the top of the conference in digs and was 6th in the nation.  She appeared to be well on her way to being one of the top libero’s in the nation as a freshman.

 

Two players suddenly left the team for Rio Grande and it left head coach Patsy Fields with a dilemma.  She was forced to abandon the 5-1 line-up that Rio Grande has featured for many years and switch to a 6-2 formation with Whittle moving from libero to one of the setter positions.

 

The 5-5 Chillicothe, OH native was a little disappointed, but without hesitation made the move. “I thought to myself at first, oh no, I’m not going to be libero and then as I thought about it more I’d rather be in a position where I was going to help the team rather than myself,” Whittle said.  “I thought that I would put the team ahead of me.  I thought that would be a good situation.”

 

“I think I did what anybody would have done,” Whittle added.  “If we would have had any players (for that position) I’m sure that they would have stepped up.  The whole team that weekend, when we were in that situation stepped up and we did it as a whole and I think overall we did very well.”

 

Although the move hasn’t produced immediate results in the form of victories, long term this move could prove to be an outstanding one for the Redwomen program.

 

Fields speaks in glowing terms of Whittle.  “I can’t say enough about Jacquie,” she said.  “She had just been presented with Libero of the Week and it is an honor in our conference.  It shows that you’re playing hard for your team and even though we may not be winning its’ still ‘I’m playing hard.’”

 

“To be put in a situation where you have to make a choice, okay, do I want to stay here or do I want to go with what’s best for the team, she never once hesitated,” Fields added.  “She said ‘Coach I will do whatever is best for this team.’”

 

“That showed to me, great leadership for her, I have made her captain of our team, because of that leadership,” Fields continued.  “She keeps our kids encouraged on the floor and she is a great leader and it did show a lot of character.”

 

What’s even more impressive about the unselfishness bestowed by Whittle is the fact that she is a freshman, still getting her feet wet in college.  “We’re talking about this from a freshman and I’ll say this for my other freshmen, they’re the same way,” Fields said.  “I have told them over and over, I like their attitude and I like the work ethic of my freshmen.”

 

“If we can keep them together and they can all keep that attitude I feel good about our program,” Fields added.  “I can say the same thing with Meg (sophomore Megan Wills), she was on the all-tournament team down there (at Cumberland University) and she was the first one that went and told Jacquie that ‘you deserved this honor more so than I did.’”

 

“We do have those kinds of things going on with our team and it is team, it’s not about me.”

 

Still getting acclimated to college life and the NAIA’s Champions of Character Initiative, Whittle shared what she has learned thus far.  “That everything is team, and that this a lot different than high school,” she said.  “It really has to be team and we need to come together.  It really has to be a team effort.”

 

Whittle was asked whether she might shift focus now on becoming setter of the week, since she no longer is playing the libero position.  “Oh, I don’t about all that,” Whittle said.  “I think I’ll leave that to Randi (Rodgers).  I’m just glad I could step up and help the team.”

 

The NAIA Champions of Character program is an educational outreach initiative which emphasizes the tenets of character and integrity, not only for NAIA college students, but for younger students, coaches and parents in our communities.

-NAIA-

The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) is the governing body for athletics programs at its nearly 300 colleges and universities throughout the United States and Canada. The long-held mission of the NAIA is to promote the education and development of well-rounded students and productive citizens through intercollegiate athletics. The association offers equitable access and opportunities for participation in its 23 national championship events held annually throughout the country.

 

Today, the NAIA strengthens its commitment to student-athletes and strives to enrich their college experience by supporting academic achievement and character development. NAIA Champions of Character is the association’s innovative flagship program designed to instill character values in student-athletes, coaches and youth in the communities it serves.