UEL Women’s Volleyball First Team Player, Allie Davenport, is a long way from home, but having left her native America in September, she has been an instrumental addition to Jefferson Williams’ side.
Laid-back in London
Davenport, who was introduced to the sport at the age of ten by her older sister, (who she wanted to emulate) has had to significantly adapt to life in East London, and spoke of becoming accustomed to the ‘laid-back’ volleyball culture, comparing the gruelling nature of the physical training in the States in sharp contrast to the less-intense training with UEL.
“It’s a lot of harder in the States, practices are a lot more cardio-based and it’s not really stop and go. They explain the drill and you do the drill and you just go, go and go and it’s more tiring. That’s really the main difference.”
Warm Welcome
The American has settled-in well, overall, and hailed her UEL teammates and coaches for making her feel more at home, as well as crediting the facilities at the University.
“I love the team. The girls are great, our coaches are awesome. Everyone has been super-welcoming here, helping me adjust. The facilities are amazing, we have enough court space, which is always a good thing and the weight room in Aqua East is awesome, as well.”
Davenport’s Debut Season
Davenport has had a predominantly triumphant debut season with the side, helping the team clinch a second consecutive BUCS Premier South title, winning nine of their ten league matches (eight of which in straight sets), while maintaining a perfect home league record at SportsDock. She also played an integral role in helping the side finish as Semi-finalists in the BUCS Championships.
The American indicated that although she wanted to win the league in invincible fashion, the defeat against Essex in the final league match, helped them grow as a unit.
“For the most part I feel great, I wish we could win it undefeated but unfortunately we only lost against Essex. I think it was a good learning experience for us and I think overall we did a good job, keeping our level high even if some of the teams that we played were not very good. Overall it is a very successful season.”
Allie’s Advice
Being able to balance University work with an active sporting lifestyle is a difficult trait to possess and requires good organisational skills. Yet, Davenport believed that time management is the key to becoming a successful student athlete.
“Some days I have practice the same time with class so I obviously have to choose to go to class over (volleyball) but it’s very tough,” she added, “Being an athlete is tiring, so sometimes you don’t want to go to class but you have to get up and go.”
