Fresno State Athletics
New Surroundings
10/23/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 24, 2001
FRESNO, Calif. - Freshman Tina Brennan and junior Lyndsey Finney are two of six players on the volleyball team whom is from outside of California. The two blond-haired women play different positions, are two years apart and are from different regions of the country, but they share the bond of being newcomers to the team and state.
Neither one knew what to expect. Neither one knew what roles they would be in except to be ready. And, neither one realized how the team would gel with them.
It began in August with two-a-days and both have practiced hard. Even with college experience behind her, Finney was sidelined by an ankle injury in the first week of preseason practice before she got to showcase her talents. Brennan was wide-eyed and was learning the expectations of filling the role of a defensive specialist.
As the Bulldogs captured an invitational title in September, own a current 11-6 overall record, and have a 9-1 home court record, they both find adjusting more of a challenge than anything else.
Finney, a setter, calls distant Scottsbluff, Neb., home. She attended Nebraska Western Community College for two years after high school. At Nebraska Western, Finney was named a National Junior College All-American while helping her team to an 86-13 record over two years.
One obvious difference between Scottsbluff and Fresno is the weather. This winter will likely be one of the hottest in Finney's life.
"It was very humid in the area where I lived. But I did like the changing of the seasons," Finney said.
Aside from the weather, the most challenging factor for Finney has been in living so far away from her family as well as adjusting to the quickness of Division I volleyball.
"I never thought I'd say I miss anything about Nebraska, but I do miss my family. I can't just go home any weekend like I could before. Volleyball has been exciting for me and I take each day as a chance to just better myself. There are very solid players in each team we meet but I think we have a team that will compete each time out."
Brennan, who is from Woodinville, Wash., also found it hard to adjust to being away from her family.
"I played in my first match this year without any of my family watching me," said Brennan. "That was definitely strange. I didn't realize all the nuances that go along with a new environment but I think I have adjusted well."
Brennan had always planned on attending a small Christian college close to home after high school. But when the time actually came, it didn't sound exciting to her anymore. But other things fell into place.
"It was a last minute decision to come to Fresno State. I hadn't even heard of Fresno until last March."
Brennan went outside of her comfort zone in coming to California.
"I never wanted to go to a big school or go away, and I did both. Now, playing volleyball for Fresno State I've been asked to be a solid contributor. It's a totally different level from playing high school but I am getting the opportunities to play. I just want to do my best and keep working hard so that this team can be successful."
With the season drawing to a close, these two will look forward to their first Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Championship Tournament in November. These two will look forward to stepping things up a notch and get past the "wall' that always seems to set in in the middle of a season. These two will get to put a full season in their back pocket and ready themselves for another chance to make a difference.
While volleyball has them tied up at the moment, the experiences off the court will be an adjustment that they both will find new as well. As neither has gone outside Fresno to explore what this great state has to offer, hopefully they will come back and find that these new surroundings are adjustments well worth it all.
