You got served

From the court to the dancefloor

Shir Nakash Reporter @shirnakash5

Most freshmen college students would find it difficult to balance a full schedule of classes with being a member of a competitive sports team, but 18-year-old Joel Pagan is standing up to the challenge.

Pagan, an administrative justice major, joined Pierce last fall after graduating from East Valley High School in 2015. Pagan said that he has always been a physically active guy and played football, basketball and volleyball throughout high school. Of the three sports, he enjoyed volleyball most and decided to continue playing it in college. Today he is part of Pierce’s competitive men’s volleyball team. Before he joined any school sports teams, Pagan took up breakdancing in sixth grade.

“I was born and raised in Puerto Rico and I moved here in sixth grade to live with my dad,” Pagan said. “Back then, all I would do was dance. I would do competitions and everything so that was my life.”

Pagan’s dad, who used to be a professional dancer, was the one who introduced him to breakdancing and taught him how to dance until he was able to teach himself. Pagan said that his dad is his biggest source of inspiration in that art. A year later, in seventh grade, Pagan moved back to Puerto Rico where breakdancing wasn’t as widely accepted.

“When I moved back to Puerto Rico, dancing wasn’t everywhere like it is here, so I kind of dropped it,” Pagan said. “It wasn’t as popular there then as it’s getting now.”

Pagan said that he really missed dancing in the three years that followed but he has continued pursuing it as a hobby ever since. Then, when he came back to Los Angeles in tenth grade, he started doing sports through school.

Today Pagan gets his volleyball team pumped before games by breakdancing in the middle of the team huddle. Lance Walker, who is currently coaching the men’s volleyball team at Pierce for his

Joel fourth consecutive year, said that he enjoys the good atmosphere Pagan brings to the team.

“Joel has a really good spirit and I think a lot of it comes from the island that he’s from, that Puerto Rican fire and the competitiveness that comes with it,” Walker said.

“It’s contagious and I love having it.”

Walker is a former Brahma himself and graduated from Pierce with his associate’s degree in 2000. The team is in season right now and spends about 13 hours each week practicing and playing volleyball.

KELLAN BRADLEY Campus Lifestyle Editor @kellanroundup and MITCH NODELMAN Sports Editor @mitchnodelman

T he beach volleyball team continued their exhibition games at California State University Northridge against the Matadors and the Santa Barbara Community College Vaqueros on Sunday, March 6th at 10:30 a.m.

The Brahmas participated in the Calderon CSUN Challenge, where CSUN hosts various exhibition games.

“It’s great that Pierce gets a chance to experience playing against a team like CSUN, and we don’t have to travel far to do it,” said Athletic Director, Bob Lofrano.

Nicolas Heredia / Roundup Megan Weaver goes for a spike during an exibition match at CSUN.

Mario Patrick, an 18 year old communications major who is also on the volleyball team, said that managing the rigorous schedule is difficult at times. Most of the team players maintain a part-time job in addition to being full-time students and athletes. Like Pagan, Patrick transferred to Pierce last fall straight after high school. Patrick and Pagan met at tryouts and have been close ever since.

“The whole team is close, really,” Patrick said. “I mean, they’re all such good guys and our coach makes sure

Pierce College won one of their top two matches against the Matadors and lost their top match against the Vaqueros.

Led by Brahma players, Cairo Harrell and Sade Escobar against CSUN’s Erin Indermil and Stephanie Serna, Pierce was able to pull out a 16-9 winning set over Northridge.

The second match, Pierce’s Danielle Marmath and Bea Hernandez played against CSUN’s Kamden Maas and Nada Dragovic, in which they were defeated in the final set by 21-9.

“Playing against teams like this keeps us on our toes, I look forward to playing against them in the future,” Marmath said.

Against the Vaqueros the Brahmas top ranked players Megan Weaver and Valentina Krivokapic lost their two sets by a score of 21-14 and 21-8.

Head coach Tom Slauterbeck believes the exhibition games have helped the team in preparing for the regular season.

The transition from indoor volleyball to the sand remains a challenge for the team, but the

Schedule

March 9- March 16

Softball

Thursday, March 10 vs. Oxnard 2:30 p.m.

Tuesday, March 15 vs. Santa Barbara 1p.m. and 3p.m.

of that when he’s recruiting. That way you’re always in good company and you’re always having a good time.”

The team has two home games coming up this week. One on Wednesday, March 9 against Long Beach, and one on Friday, March 11 against Santa Monica. The demanding hours don’t leave the volleyball players such as Pagan and Patrick with too much time for other activities, but Walker says he’s not worried. “That’s what summer’s for,” Walker said.

Brahmas remain optimistic that they will be ready for the regular season.

“Were actually really confident. We’ve gotten better from the first day we started. Each game were learning something. The girls are becoming more relaxed,” Slauterbeck said.

Krivokapic said that the coaching staff has helped in the transition from indoor to the sand.

“Coach Tom is really good. I think that we can learn a lot from him,” Krivokapic said. “We are competing always. That’s our motto.”

“The next few games are going to be challenging, but I believe our girls are ready and will be able to pull through with a victory,” said indoor coach Nabil Mardini.

“All the games we’ve had now are getting us prepared for the conference (regular season),” Slauterbeck said. “I think they are going to be ready.”

Pierce College Sand Volleyball team season continues as they play on March 11 against Rio Hondo, Palomar, and Mira Costa at Carlsbad Beach at 10 a.m.