Started Womens Athletic Program
)
J
Collins completing 25 years
as women’s athletic coach
By TOM APPENZELLER
Assistant Director of Athletics
At a time when John F. Kennedy was
president, the Beatles were just arriving on
the shores of America, and Andy Griffith
was a sheriff, not a lawyer, Janet Collins
started coaching at Chowan College.
A little more than 25 years ago, the
University of Richmond graduate was the
sum total of women’s athletics and ac
tivities at the Murfreesboro school.
“I started the women’s athletics program
when I came to Chowan and we operated
under the name of women's recreation
association, the WRA,” said Collins
recently. “We offered volleyball, basketball
and softball as varsity sports, an intramural
program and three pep squads,
cheerleaders, bravettes and majorettes.
Coached All Sports
“We did not recruit any students, but
made the program available to everybody.
In fact, the varsity athletes ran the in
tramural program and one or two athletes
Fall play
scheduled
by Players
Professor Sandra Boyce, director of
the Chowan Players, has announced
that the campns drama group wfll
present “Dirty Work at the
Crossroads” Nov. 10-12 in Turner
Auditorium of McDowell Columns.
Admission is $5 for adults and $2 for
students, and Chowan students are
admitted free to the preformances
which begin at 8 p. m. each evening.
The Chowan Players presented the
popular Broadway musical “Damn
Yankees” during the past spring
semester. The play received
numerous accolades from faculty,
staff members and students. One staff
member summed up the prevailing
opinion when he stated the play was
“greatly enjoyed” and called it “fine
entertainment”.
Although the play was first
presented on Broadway on May 5,
1955, and ran for 1,019 performances,
the Chowan Players’ revival of
“Damn Yankees” put them in the
forefront of the current wave of
drama interest in baseball. Since the
Chowan Players presented the play in
March, Hollywood has introduced
several baseball movies including
“Bull Durham” and “Eight Men
Out.”
The November play, “Dirty Work at
the Crossroads,” is a melodrama that
is a lot of fun, both to present and
watch, according to one drama ob
server.
would play on each team. We only had about
15 good athletes and they used to play all
three varsity sports.”
Collins arrived at Chowan long before
men’s and women’s sports were viewed as
subjects which should receive equal sup
port.
Volleyball, as today, was played in the
fall. But that’s about the only thing alike
between then and now. Women’s basketball
was of the six-on-six version and didn’t
begin until after the holidays. Major
changes have taken place since Collins’
arrival.
Previous Experience
Collins came to Chowan after teaching
science and physical education at South
Granville High School in Creedmore,N.C.
The Richmond native, who played
basketball and field hockey for Thomas
Jefferson High School, saw the women’s
athletic program begin to change in 1975,
the year Chowan joined the NCAIAW as a
Division in program.
“We did not give scholarships, but we
were able to compete in the state tour
naments,” said CoUins.
Collins, still coaching three sports, saw
her volleyball team finish second once and
third twice in the state tournament. In 1978,
Chowan joined the National Junior College
Athletic Association (NJCAA), and the
Lady Braves became eligible for national
tournament.
“When we joined the NJCAA, we split up
the coaching duties and I began to con
centrate on volleyball,” said Collins. “I did
not have any experience playing volleyball
in high school or college, but became in
terested in the strategy involved in power
volleyball. We had always played a
recreational type of volleyball with the
object being just hit the ball over the net any
way possible.”
Since 1978, Collins is 234-141 in NJCAA
competition, with trips to the national
tournament two of the last three years.
Recruiting Players
“Twenty-five years ago, the students that
were here wanted to participate,” said
Collins, who was the Region 10 and District 9
Coach of the Year in 1985 and 1986. “Now,
you have to be a salesman and convince the
students to come to Chowan. If you can
recruit the athletes, they are more skilled
today because many just play one sport.”
Collins does have a hand up in un
derstanding the money involved with going
to college and the monetary stresses some
students face because her husband, Cliff, is
the Director of Financial Planning.
Recognized last February by the North
Carolina Amateur Sports Association for
her contributions to women’s athletics,
Collins has not considered retiring from
coaching.
Sets Goals for the Future
“My husband and I both enjoy our jobs
and we like the community and people we
work with,” she said. “I would like to go
back to the nationals again and finish bet
ter than 13th, which we did in 1986.
“But winning is not the bottom line. Hav
ing a team reach its capabilities is more
important.”
Coach
Janet
Collins
“Winning is not the
bottom line.
Having a team reach
its capabilities
is more important. ”
—Coach Janet Collins
Coach Collins’ team in action, demonstrating the fast-paced "power^'
volley/ball sty/le of play;. i
The Chowanian. October, 3988 —PAGE SEV^I