Volleyball Enjoys Final Days in Costa Rica

Hola amigos,

Greetings from beautiful Costa Rica!  Tonight is our last night here and it is bittersweet.  We are looking forward to seeing friends and family again soon but sad to be leaving such a wonderful place.  This trip has been everything I had hoped for and more.  We got to see and do so many incredible things that it is almost hard to remember them all.  Fortunately, we all have tons and tons of pictures and videos to help.

Earlier today (Tuesday) we left our beach resort (Punta Leona) after catching a few last rays by the beach and pool and traveled back to San Jose.  Many of us used the afternoon to make a quick run to the grocery store next to the hotel for last minute items and gifts (did someone say Costa Rican coffee?) and to relax before our last volleyball match this evening.  We headed to the local tennis club to play Costa Rica's junior national (U-20) team.  This was not the current national team, but some of these players may someday compete at the Olympics or World Championships for Costa Rica.  They were young, but then again so are we, as 9 of our 11 players on this trip were only freshmen or sophomores. Our first two performances on this trip were not something a coach would want to remember, but tonight was a different story.  The team looked more focused, more energetic, and the team finished plays and won lots of long rallies.  The first two sets were close throughout, and we used a variety of players in different positions to get the job done as we went up 2-0 with a 26-24 win in game one and a 25-23 win in game two.  The third set was close early before those Behrend beasts put several nice swings together down the stretch to pull away for a 25-19 win to close out the match.  Afterwards each team thanked, congratulated, and wished the other good luck.  Chelsea Magnusen was selected by our opponents as the MVP of the match, and it was a good choice as she got our offense moving with smart decisions and solid set location and also made an impact behind the service line.  Graduating senior Danielle Woods turned in her typical performance of making great plays look easy in her last match for the blue and white.

It's now time to say thank you.  After the match we had our final team dinner and thanked our terrific guide, Gaby with some tokens of appreciation.  Gaby has gone above and beyond for us the entire trip.  As a coach you are always anxious when taking a team on an international tour but from the moment we met Gaby we felt comfortable and safe with her.  She has added to the fun and excitement of our trip and represented her company and her country extremely well.  We all wish we could bring her back to the states with us!  Thank you Gaby for all your hard work,  and for your kind spirit, you truly made this an unforgetable experience.  Fabrizio our bus driver, what can I say other than, he's the man.  Despite none of us speaking much Spanish and him not speaking much English, we've bonded and made a true friend.  I'm not sure if anybody was more excited for our win tonight than him as I heard his booming voice cheering us on all match.  He added to our experience and likewise made every effort to make this a great trip for us.  Our tour company, Costa Rica Sports Tours did an exceptional job.  They were organized, professional, flexible, and it was clearly evident that they wanted us to to have the best trip possible.  Thank you to Randall and Magaly and the whole CR Sports team.

Behind the scenes, Behrend Director of Athletics Brian Streeter was a big help and I really appreciate his guidance in helping me decide to put this tour together.  Thank you to Jill Yamma, our exceptional Sports Information Director, for keeping our friends and family posted on our trip with these website updates.  Also at Penn State Behrend, Ruth Pflueger, our trip coordinator/liason/advisor was absolutely instrumental in organizing this trip.  She spent a significant amount of time and effort in helping me compete the necessary paperwork and other trip prep that is needed to make these tours happen.   We had two parents traveling with us on this trip, Joanne and Keith Sperry.  It is always helpful to have a few more adults around and the Sperry's were a fun, flexible, and adventurous pair to share in this experience.  I must extend a BIG thank you to my wonderful assistant coach Carissa Johnston.  You were a vital part of this trip and made it so much more enjoyable for me by helping in the responsibility for the team and in all the decisions that are a part of this trip, simply stated: I couldn't have done it without you.  Finally I'd like to thank all our supporters who contributed to our trip during our various fundraisers, I hope that you realize what an awesome experience this has been that you helped to make possible.

Our incredible trip is coming to an end, and while we all will remember the fun events (rafting, soaking in hot springs, hiking in the rainforest, swimming near a waterfall, zip-lining through the canopy, gazing at Arenal Vocanoe, playing with the children at the day care center, and laying out at the beach) I hope that we also remember the country and the people who were so welcoming to us, and that we return home with a better perspective about ourselves, our own country, and our place in the world.  The volleyball is really the excuse to travel, but the team bonding and the chance to open your eyes to a different culture and people are the true reasons to take these tours.  

Costa Rica is a peaceful, proud nation, whose best days are probably yet to come.  It has much to offer and I'll be eternally thankful that we were able to take a team tour to such a fantastic land.  Thanks again to everyone who helped us along the way or said a few prayers for our safe travels.  See you soon, pura vida!

Head Coach Phil Pisano