by Sean Begin
When Central Connecticut volleyball takes the court again in the fall, it’ll be without the presence of seniors Veronika Ban and Amalia Ashley. They will, however, feature four freshman recently signed by head Coach Linda Sagnelli, all of whom add depth to a team fresh off its second straight conference finals appearance.
“Our program has a high standard for athletic and academic success, and we are proud of the academic and athletic performance of this incoming class,” said Sagnelli in a statement released through the athletic department.
Sagnelli adds two local athletes in Emma Schissel, of Colchester, and Lindsey Massicotte, of Meriden, as well as Maddie Smith, from Pleasanton, Calif., and Nicole Celarek, of Bensenville, Ill.
According to Sagnelli, of the three, Celarek is the most likely to see significant time in the starting lineup as an outside hitter, playing from the right side to complement current sophomore Heather Trueman.
“We were looking for a freshman to come in who would get playing time and start, be an impact freshman, kind of like all the freshman we just had,” said Sagnelli. “With that, it looks like Nicole is going to come in and really contribute right away.”
A four year member of her Fenton High School varsity volleyball squad, Celarek also plays for the Sports Performance Volleyball Club team, which Sagnelli calls one of the best club teams in the country. Celarek, at six-foot-two, will bring added height and size to the Blue Devil frontcourt.
“We really wanted to get a little more physical in the frontcourt, and she definitely brings that physicality to the game,” said Sagnelli. “Nicole comes in already possessing good strength. We know she’ll get stronger when she gets into college and matures a little bit.”
Schissel and Massicotte, both from Connecticut, will come in as defensive players, adding depth to the defensive specialist position, with Schissel also working with the setters and Massicotte with the liberos.
Schissel played for Bacon Academy during high school, and will slot in behind current sophomores Makenna Lommori and Ashley Lenington during her freshman season.
“She’s going to provide good depth,” said Sagnelli of Schissel. “I think she has some training to do. She’ll go with the setters and get the setter training. But she’ll also go with our backcourt crew when they’re going in for their reception reps and passing reps. So she’ll be doing both.”
Massicotte earned All-Conference honors while playing for her Maloney High School team each of the past three seasons. With Amalia Ashley graduating, Massicotte will add depth to the position currently filled by freshman Rachel Fish and junior Brittany Schumacher.
“We always like to have three [liberos] on the team because it really makes you strong in that backcourt position,” said Sagnelli. “Lindsey is going to come in and push for playing time right away.
Added Sagnelli: “I think she’s got a very solid base right now, fundamentally. She really needs to fine-tune some of the skills. But she’s going to jump in; her feet are going to hit the ground running. She will most certainly provide great depth to the backcourt crew.”
Sagnelli has said previously that club volleyball competition in the northeast is comparably weaker than in other areas of the country, such as in Texas or on the West Coast. But Sagnelli calls the addition of two local athletes “incredibly important.”
“Having Connecticut athletes on the team really ties everything together,” said Sagnelli. “We would love to be able to take the top players in Connecticut every year. We’re very fortunate with Lindsey and Emma committing to us and deciding to come to Central.”
Sagnelli’s final recruit, Maddie Smith, adds another player to a pool of starters that hail from California and nearby West Coast states. Smith joins Lenington, Trueman and junior Rachel Dunlap, as well as departing senior Veronika Ban, as Blue Devil recruits from the Golden State.
Lommori, from Nevada, and freshman Brooke Schwab, from Oregon, round out the West Coast recruits Sagnelli has brought to New Britain the past few years.
Smith, like Schissel and Massicotte, will spend time behind established starters as she begins her freshman year. At five-foot-eleven, she will play the middle blocker position behind Dunlap and Schwab, honing her skills in her first collegiate season.
“She’s got a great vertical jump,” said Sagnelli. “She’s going to be playing behind Rachel and Brooke, but what two great role models to have. And she’s going to be working very hard. We’ll actually have four people working in the middle because Nicole Dean will be working in the middle a little bit. Maddie solidifies that position.”
In addition to Dunlap, Schwab and Smith, Celarek and current freshman Nicole Dean will see time at middle blocker, providing Sagnelli and assistant coach Greg Shell with strong depth at the position.
“We wanted to make sure with our outsides, with our middle, with our right sides, that we didn’t have any weaknesses,” said Sagnelli. “And we feel very strongly going into next season that we’re deep… and that only helps the team.”
Each of the recruits is seeing time at their positions on their club teams, providing valuable experience before arriving at Central in August. Both Massicotte and Smith were competing at a recent tournament in Philadelphia that Sagnelli and Shell were recruiting at.
All the recruits, with Celarek perhaps being the exception, will have time this coming season to continue their development as players. Sagnelli hopes they follow in the footsteps of Trueman, who emerged this past season as an All-Conference outside hitter after brief playing time her freshman year.
“She had that year to put strength on, technically fine-tune everything, get up to the speed of the college game. It helped her tremendously,” said Sagnelli of Trueman.
Sagnelli expects each recruit to have a shot at seeing playing time, with Celarek most certain of the four to make it into the lineup.
“They come in with a good level of talent that if we need to, some of them are going to be getting in there and fighting for a spot right away,” said Sagnelli.
That level of competition, though, should only serve to bring the best out of the players already on the team.