athletes – Houghton STAR

By Abigail Bates ('26)

Houghton’s new men’s volleyball program began playing in 2023-2024, under its Head Coach Lindsay Seddon and Assistant Coach Dave Bourne.

“When I decided to attend Houghton,” Elijah Sproull (‘26), a setter and rightside hitter, commented, “I had accepted that I was leaving Volleyball behind, it was hard but I felt that this was where the Lord wanted me to be. I know now he has many reasons for having me here and being a part of this team is one of those.”

Lindsay Seddon, a volleyball alumna of Houghton University, returned in May of 2023 to serve as the program’s first Head Coach, with Coach Bourne later joining her in August. While women’s volleyball has strong roots at Houghton, men’s volleyball was only an active club sport during the 1990s and early 2000s. The current team consists of 14 players—Jerry Buno, Devin Burns, Luke George, Caleb Holscher, Gabriel Lucena, Thomas McGlynn, Anthony Panboon, Jonah Sissel, Elijah Sproull, Jase Stone, Elijah Studt, Devin Tullar, Jared Wright and Luke Yelle—who all entered the program with different levels of experience.

“Coach [Lindsay],” outside hitter Caleb Holscher (‘26) stated, “has done an incredible job of getting our program off the ground. She was tasked with taking a team of competitive volleyball players, athletes who had only played pick-up and Athletes who had never played the game and she made a team out of us.”

Due to the program being new, the coaches have been developing its foundations during the current season.

“Our focus this season is to cultivate who Houghton Men’s Volleyball is: and that’s representing Jesus by doing good work in all that we do, together,” Coach Seddon emphasized.

Holscher put it as a motto of “More of Him,” which he explained as focusing on more of Jesus and less of themselves. He has expressed pride in how his teammates have embodied this attitude through honoring Christ first, building one another up, working hard to improve, preparing the program for future athletes and their brotherhood that encourages one another to be better men of God.

“The team has been amazing,” Sproull declared, “it has been awesome to see the exponential improvement from every player. We are the fastest improving team and that is so cool to be a part of.”

The team’s daily practices begin by warming up and stretching, and then they do partner control drills that focus on refining technique. Coach Seddon explained that when she and Coach Bourne spot weak points during their review of matches from the day prior, they will implement drills during practice to help the team perform better in those areas.

“Our guys are the best!” Coach Bourne expressed. “There is a great deal of cohesiveness and respect amongst all players. They value their relationship with God first and foremost. They work very hard and we can also share some laughs and lighter moments, too. We have many first time volleyball players that have taken learning the game very seriously. This is evidenced by the amazing improvement we have seen by all. All this has been nourished by Lindsay’s coaching and leadership.”

Holscher and Sproull both commented on how amazing their coaches have been this season, with Coach Seddon starting the program and Coach Bourne bringing his vast knowledge and experience to the team. Holscher added that a quote of Coach Bourne’s is “the ball doesn’t hit the floor without a body hitting the floor with it,” exemplifying how Coach Bourne keeps the atmosphere of the team light, while never being afraid to push Holscher and his teammates to give their best, no matter the circumstances.

“When the team [is] dialled in and focused, they are a force to be reckoned with and can keep up with teams who are more established,” Coach Seddon remarked.

The men’s volleyball team had their first match win against Maranatha Baptist this last Saturday Jan. 27 and will be up against Roberts Wesleyan on Saturday Feb. 3. While the team has played Roberts Wesleyan twice without winning yet, Holscher explained that they are excited to get “another shot at it” this weekend.

“So be at Nielsen at 2:00 this Saturday,” Holscher stated, “cause if we beat Roberts you’re gonna wish you had been in the building.” ★

By Sophia Vernon ('26)

“[Athletes] are a clique because they all know each other,” stated Abigail Franz (’25), adding that “sometimes it feels like because I’m not on a sports team, I’m on a different level, and there is a divide.”

Franz exemplifies an overarching feeling of detachment and separation between non-athletes and the third of Houghton’s student body that plays a sport.

Franz, a biology major, explained that “the bio department is pretty overrun by sports people wanting to do exercise science.” She stated that her experiences with getting to know athletes individually have been positive; however, “it’s hard because of that initial divide.”

On the flip side, Arija Grant (’26), a Houghton Women’s Tennis player, explained that she has often felt excluded from on-campus events due to practice and game schedules, highlighting specifically an away tennis match she had on the same night as a homecoming dance.

Jana Newberry, the Director of Student Engagement, emphasized that “the distinction between athletes and non-athletes is natural” and that she does not “necessarily get mad at it.” Echoing student concerns, Newberry stated, “I have a problem with athletes feeling excluded from things,” pointing out that “there is too much distance.” She attributes this problem in part to both groups “not knowing what they don’t know about how to get plugged in” and a “lack of understanding and stereotypes.”

Newberry spoke on the natural divides arising from the lack of athletic representation and participation in the Campus Activities Board (CAB) events. She addressed that “sometimes the (CAB) events can be echo chambers,” with the same people attending events, lacking expansion to wider audiences.

Enter Selah Kertz (’24), Tymber Wynn (’25) with Lander Nation. When asked about her experience with the social dynamics between athletes and non-athletes on campus, Kertz stated, “It feels really divided.” She related her experience during her semester on the track team of eating dinner with the team and sitting on the “sports side” of the dining hall, but that “looking from the other side (non-athlete perspective), it feels very separate.” She explained that this time on the track team assisted her in making athlete friends, stating, “I’m not sure I would have met a lot of the people I know without my previous connections to other athletes.”

Resulting from the lack of community and spirit between athletes and non-athletes, Kertz and Wynn started Lander Nation, a non-Houghton-affiliated group on campus that works through on-campus events, themes and representatives for each athletic team to foster school spirit and community. Kertz explained that she knows a lot of “NARPs” (non-athlete-regular-person), and Wynn, a Houghton Women’s Basketball player, knows a lot of athletes. The intention was to “bring NARPs in to participate in athletics,” as well as “bridging the gap and having actual school spirit.”

Grant explained how easy it is for athletes to feel excluded from school events and isolated to teams, stating that “there is a divide because of how much intentional time you spend with your team” and that “it’s obvious you’re going to get closer with people you spend so much time with.” In troubleshooting the problem, Grant pointed out, “Houghton does a pretty good job emphasizing music and art, but there could be better advertising (for athletic events) on campus.” She concluded that “athletes could be encouraged to support other areas, and it could go both ways.” ★