By Emmi Fisher
Staff Writer
Have you recently been in Cass Gymnasium?
If you have, you probably heard yells and cheers coming from the large crowd that packs in for the LLCC Women’s Volleyball team. If one has taken a few minutes to check out all the commotion going on, one would understand it all after a glance at the scoreboard. Lincoln Land Community College has a nationally-ranked volleyball team this year. The team has a 10-game winning streak, and they want to keep it up until they win nationals.
The volleyball team has a lot of success and victories going on right now. If one has been to the games, they would also notice a 6-foot tall player for LLCC. One might need to take a double take because you also can see this exceptionally talented athlete at basketball practice.
Sydney Taylor Jarrard is not just the middle hitter on Lincoln Land’s No. 4 nationally-ranked volleyball team, but she also plays basketball,
Jarrard does all of this while maintaining a 3.22 GPA.
Jarrard was born in Springfield and grew up in a small town just 20 minutes away that has a debated pronunciation: Athens.
Jarrard was kind enough to take some time to answer some questions:
TL: So how did you get involved in volleyball?
STJ: I started playing volleyball in the sixth grade, that’s when it started for our school, and I really wasn’t like, “oh let’s be on the volleyball team”, all my friends were on it, so I was like, “I will be on it too!” Then I started competitive volleyball in the seventh grade. In the eighth grade we won the Lincoln classic for the first time. My high school team was not as good, so I continued playing club volleyball until my senior year of high school. But my senior year I broke my ankle and was unable to play only but five volleyball games.
TL: How did you get involved playing basketball?
STJ: I think I have been playing basketball since the fourth grade. I was a part of Athens Youth Sports Association, there I played soccer, baseball, and basketball.
TL: When did you find you like basketball better than all the other sports?
STJ: Basketball was definitely my favorite sport over soccer and baseball for as long as I could remember.
TL: What are some of your accomplishments in sports?
STJ: Well my junior year of high school I lead all the stats on my volleyball team. But senior year, I broke my ankle and only played five games, so I didn’t get any, but I got the defense award in basketball my senior year.
“Sydney is awesome for being able to play both collegiate basketball
and volleyball. Trying to juggle
both of those sports with school would be crazy.”
Taylor Wienke, volleyball teammate
TL: Why did you decide to play both volleyball and basketball?
STJ: My senior year of high school I talked to the LLCC Women’s volleyball and basketball coaches about playing both sports. But since I was new to college I just decided my first year to
Just play basketball, but I really was missing volleyball so I thought if I can handle it, why not just play volleyball also this year.
TL: How do you manage your time?
STJ: It’s a struggle actually, I have to really think about what and when practices are, and when to do my study tables. I pretty much do thirty minutes of study tables whenever I can.
TL: How do you feel about practicing four or more hours a night?
STJ: It goes by pretty fast. I enjoy it.
TL: How do you feel about your season right now?
STJ: I think we’re doing awesome, we had a little let down, but I think you have to lose some games to humble yourself, not that we’re cocky but, just to refocus.
TL: How do you feel about basketball starting up?
STJ: I think we should be better this year than we were last year. We now have faster guards and more tall people.
TL: What gets you excited for games? Do you have any rituals you do?
STJ: I like to listen to music before, like our warm up CD this year, everyone picked a year, then a song from that year.
TL: What year and song did you pick?
STJ: I had 1968, “I wanna rock”.
“Sydney is an amazing athlete and person. It’s very impressive that she can juggle two sports and college!”
Summer Sabo, volleyball teammate
TL: Do have a mentor you look up to in volleyball or basketball?
STJ: I never really watched volleyball or basketball. Everyone always knew what was going on in like the NBA, and I was like I am glad you know, but I just like to play.
TL: What are some pros and cons of central Illinois?
STJ: The winters are so cold and they suck. I like how it is rural, then you just come to Springfield and it’s not a super city, but there are things to do.
TL: What are some actives you like to do outside of school?
STJ: I like to paint, I am taking my third art class, but outside of that, I really do not have time for much else. Well I work.
TL:: Where do you work at?
STJ: I work at Chaditos and Goals Indoor sports, which is like an indoor soccer complex.
TL: What is Chaditos?
STJ: It is a Mexican-American fast food restaurant.
“Sydney’s a hard worker and, given that she didn’t play last season, has done fabulous. I admire the commitment she’s putting into playing two sports at the college level; kids able to do that, and keep their academics in order, don’t come along every day.”
-Jim Dietz, volleyball coach
TL: What is your major?
STJ: I am undecided but, I am going for an Associates in Science for Biology. Just in case I want to do anything in the medical field. But I really have no idea.
TL: What will to be doing after LLCC? And where do you think you will be?
STJ: I am taking to some coaches about playing volleyball, I don’t think I can play another six more months of basketball for another two years because I think my knees and ankles would be broken by then.
TL: How is basketball different than volleyball?
STJ: Well I am definitely not in basketball shape you can say. You can be aggressive in both sports, but girls in basketball can get mad and you can physically injure each other. In volleyball you are just hitting the ball at them.
TL: Is there anything only a few people know about you?
STJ: That’s a hard question. Probably not I am a pretty open person.
TL: One practice I saw you were dressed up in these crazy ‘80s clothes, what was that all about?
STJ: Well our coach said if we won our game that Thursday against Lincoln Community College we could have a theme day. We all got to pick what we wanted to do. It was fun! Hopefully we’ll get to do it again!
“Sydney is a great person to have on your team. She works hard in practice and games. Sydney is also a tremendous team player. She supports her teammates and always has a good attitude.”
-Gary Albert, women’s basketball coach
TL: What time is bed time?
STJ: It depends on the night. At the beginning of the year I was really good about going to bed around ten thirty, but now it’s closer to eleven thirty or midnight. There are some nights I have to stay up and binge art work all night.
TL: How do you feel when you’re super tired and does it help your artwork to be more vibrant?
STJ: Well, maybe.
TL: Do you have any pets?
STJ: I have a dog who is 15 named socks because of her white feet, and black body. She is a mixed and was the runt of the litter, but all her brother and sisters are dead…so. My brother has a giant black lab, what is massive. At my mom’s house my little step brother who is ten just wants to help out all these stray animals, so our garage consist of two blind cats, another stray cat my step dad found at work, and a dog.
TL: So would you consider your house a non–profit for animals?
STJ: Yeah, Kind of. In my garage it smells like a petting zoo. My little nieces are like, “Oh I want to go to the zoo”, but I say “No you can go to grandma’s house”.
Emmi Fisher can be reached at [email protected].