Editor’s note: This article was initially published in The Daily Gazette, Swarthmore’s online, daily newspaper founded in Fall 1996. As of Fall 2018, the DG has merged with The Phoenix. See the about page to read more about the DG.
Here at the Gazette we are very excited about Jennifer Wang ’09. While being named “Centennial Conference Player of the Week” for supporting a valiant volleyball team during a recent tournament may be extraordinary, doing it during her first week of college is out of this world.
Swarthmore reigned victorious during the “Moravian Greyhound Premiere Invitational Tournament,” overpowering four separate teams in one weekend. Wang delivered some 11 service aces, a team best. We caught up with her for a few questions recently.
Daily Gazette: What was your reaction to being chosen as “Centennial Conference Player of the Week”?
Jennifer Wang: I think I was the last person on my team to know that I was chosen as “Player of the Week.” It took me a while to digest this piece of information because I didn’t realize how big it was. But afterwards, I was really excited and happy.
DG: How long have you been playing volleyball?
JW: I’ve been playing volleyball for 8 years.
DG: What do you think of the team this year? Any huge differences between high school and college teams?
JW: The team chemistry is great, I don’t think I’ve ever been with such a close team before. I felt accepted right from the beginning which was really nice especially for an incoming freshman. There aren’t any huge differences between high school teams and college teams for me. Coming from
California where competition is really heated, I think I play volleyball this competitively at Swat just like anywhere else.
DG: What is your favorite Swarthmore class? Are professors generally understanding of your team commitments?
JW: I don’t have a favorite class yet, just because we haven’t really started doing anything for any of the classes except for homework. As for team commitments, most of my teachers don’t know that I’m on the volleyball team.
DG: How has fan participation been at games so far? Are Swatties generally excited about volleyball?
JW: The fan participation is pretty good. Our first home game was really fun because a lot of people came. But some day, I hope to see a full house in the stands.
