1. Coach’s Corner Hello All, Happy 2009! I hope your New Year has started well. There have been many exciting changes for the volleyball program since I last wrote. Thanks to the Hamilton Faculty Development Fund, Hamilton sponsored my to travel to Omaha, Nebraska to attend the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Convention. The Convention was a week long event that featured professional development sessions, networking, a hall of fame and All- American luncheon and high school talent showcase. It was capped off with the NCAA Division I Finals featuring Nebraska, Texas, Stanford and Penn State. Sand court educational sessions were led by Todd Rogers, 2008 beach volleyball Olympic gold-medalist and volleyball legend Karch Kiraly. Indoor presentations were made by some of the game's elite, notably new U.S. Women's National Team coach, Hugh McCutcheon, silver-medalist coach, Sue Woodstra, as well as Terry Pettit, Mary Wise, Mick Haley and Al Scates, among others. To say I had a good time would be an understatement. It was wonderful to have the honor of rubbing elbows with some of the most knowledgeable athletes and coaches in the nation, all thanks to the funding provided to faculty members, like myself, from the Dean of Faculty’s Office. Going to the Convention really helped put in perspective how much the sport of volleyball has grown over the years. Notably, the growth could be seen in the Convention's record attendance (second largest in history at nearly 1600), and the staggering fan turn out for the NCAA Finals. Just ten years ago the Finals attracted around 10,000 fans. This year the ticket sales were through the roof with over 100,000 fans! The energy at the event was just incredible and since the finals were held in Nebraska, with the Huskers in the Final Four, the arena was a sea of red chaos! Excitement usually reserved for football was emanating as strongly for our great sport of volleyball. Seeing such a turn out at the Finals helped prove that volleyball can draw a significant fan base. We hope to bring that same type of excited to Hamilton in the coming seasons. The Convention and winter break were great, but now I am ready to tackle the 2009 season! My excitement for the sport and being here at Hamilton has been reinvigorated, and manned with the invaluable information I gained at the Convention, I will look forward to seeing new skills integrated on our team. There is still quite some time before that, though, so in the meantime, the team and I will be meeting this semester to work through the book “The Team Captain’s Leadership Manual”. An excellent read, which everyone is excited to start on. Yours in Volleyball, Erin Reding

2. What are your favorite things about Hamilton? The people are great, the campus is beautiful and it’s a fun place to be. Why did you choose Hamilton? It’s a DIII school that had the academics I wanted to study. It is a pretty campus and the people I met on the visit were warm and inviting. What is your favorite part of being on the volleyball team? Playing volleyball and hanging out with the team. Favorite Movies- Remember the Titans, Coach Carter, 10 Things I Hate About You, Disney Movies. Favorite TV Shows- The Daily Show, The Office, Grey’s Anatomy Favorite Volleyball Moments- Our first weekend this season when we finished our last game with a win. Alex Singh, RS Major: World Politics and Foreign Language (Japanese & French) Class Year: ‘11 Home Town: London, England High School: American School in London Height: 5-9 Jersey Number 12 Hamilton Volleyball Phonathon Alumni and Friends, On Sunday, February 8 and Sunday, February 15, current volleyball players will make calls to alumni and friends of Hamilton Volleyball. From 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., student athletes will be calling to reconnect with old friends and request donations for the volleyball team. As a program on the rise every little bit helps. We look forward to speaking with you personally to give you an update on the exciting changes happening with Hamilton volleyball Alumni Volleyball Anyone? Calling all alumni! As the new head coach at Hamilton College, I would love an opportunity to meet you all at an alumni volleyball match. No word on a date yet, but if there is anyone interested please contact me and I will work on setting up an event. My e-mail is ereding@hamilton.edu and my office number is 315-859-4806.