Alabama Volleyball Newcomer Q&A: Meghan Neelon
8/15/2017 4:33:00 PM | Volleyball
Alabama Volleyball welcomes eight newcomers to the 2017 team and all eight will have Q&A features posted on rolltide.com heading into the season. The second featured newcomer is freshman Meghan Neelon from Clarence Center, N.Y.
How did you get your start playing volleyball?
"My mom played at USC and coached college so I started playing when I was about eight years old and I fell in love with it instantly. My mom helped me out with it a lot throughout my career. I also played basketball, soccer, softball and swimming too. I played basketball in high school for a year but after that I decided volleyball was more important to me and just focused on that."
When did you realize you may be able to take volleyball to the next level and play in college?
"I got my first letter when I was in eighth grade. My mom, knowing about the recruiting process, asked me if I wanted to play in college and I did. I loved the sport so much and at that point I really started pushing myself to get recruited and start that whole process."
When did the recruiting process start for you?
"It all happened around my freshman and sophomore years. I was really attracted to the south. I'm from the north so leaving the weather was great. I'm not a fan of snow. I wanted to go somewhere far away and experience something new."
What schools were you looking at initially? Any particular conference or area of the country?
"I went to some of the local schools in New York and then some other ones like Duke, Wake Forest and Kent State. Of the schools I visited, Alabama was towards the end of the process. I didn't know much about the school before I researched it, just that it had a really good football team."
What was it about Alabama that you liked most?
"When I finally visited, I fell in love with the campus, the people and the coaches. I knew it was a good fit for me the minute I got here. The facilities on campus are beautiful and everything here is so different from where I'm from. I love the pride from the students and fans about the school and their sports. They had the major I wanted and the team was really nice, one of the nicest ones I met."
When did Alabama offer and when did you accept?
"My visit was at the beginning of my sophomore year. Coach [Ed] Allen came up to New York later to watch me and then he offered me over the phone maybe a month later. I wanted to come back to campus again and show my parents everything. My dad hadn't been down there yet so I wanted to get his opinion. When I was down for the second time I committed when I was on campus.
"I was pretty sure heading down that I was going to commit and when I got there I knew 100 percent. We were all at a gymnastics meet and I told the coaches and they were really excited. It was fun."
How has the transition to college life been so far?
"It's been good. It's all about time management and I'm getting better at it. I took a lot of college classes in high school so I knew what to expect with the work load. I'm pretty comfortable with it so far."
How about the transition on the court from high school to college?
"Everyone is more vocal on the court. It's a higher level. It's faster which is great because I love playing at that faster pace."
Looking ahead to the fall, what are some of your individual and team goals?
"It would be a big deal for me to get an opportunity on the court as a freshman. As a team, I want us to win an SEC championship. I have high expectations for our team. I want to make the NCAA Tournament and do well there."
What advice would you give to a high school player who wants to play in college?
"Keep your options open. I didn't know much about Alabama until I started doing the research. Write letters to the coaches, even if you don't know what the school looks like. Don't shut anything out of the picture."
