歪歪漫画

ROCHESTER, Minn. 鈥� Paige Tapp just laughs when she thinks about what it would be like to go through the recruiting process again. I guess, for some, recruiting doesn鈥檛 ever stop when it comes to finagling the job market. But the difference is night and day when comparing what Tapp went through in the early 2010s and what elite volleyball prospects go through today.

Paige and her twin sister, Hannah, were always going to be a package deal. The twins did everything together at Stewartville from 2009-13. The duo starred on the volleyball court and played basketball and ran track and field too. But they didn鈥檛 play high-level, elite club volleyball until their junior year. They were slightly behind the eight-ball, timing-wise.

But they certainly had enough talent to make up for it. The Tapp sisters went on to star for Minnesota. Four winning seasons and two Final Four appearances.

鈥淚 feel really lucky,鈥� Paige Tapp said. 鈥淚t might have been because I stayed close to home and had a really good support system. But the first year is really challenging for everyone. You have to learn how to stick it out and realize that everyone is going through it too and that it鈥檚 supposed to be hard. If you work through it, you鈥檒l find your place at that school. I was lucky to have that support system that was telling me, 鈥楾his is the right place for you even if it doesn鈥檛 feel like it right now. Sophomore year will be better. Junior year will be better.鈥� I鈥檓 so glad I stayed. It was such a great experience for me.鈥�

Hannah was an All-Big Ten selection for two years in a row. Paige was an honorable mention All-Big Ten selection in back-to-back years. They鈥檝e gone on to have uber-successful careers overseas and with USA Volleyball. They didn鈥檛 need to be getting ahold of college recruiters before they became teenagers to be successful.

鈥淚 really hope that people realize that they don鈥檛 have to commit to schools in seventh grade,鈥� Paige Tapp said. 鈥淵our skill will lead you to the right program. Even if you鈥檙e a late developer like Hannah and I were, you鈥檙e still going to have an opportunity to play at a big program. We were lucky. We didn鈥檛 face the pressure when we were super young. It was more when we were 17 or 18.鈥�

Now, the thought of playing elite club volleyball as juniors in high school would send shivers down the spines of players who want to be recruited by high-major programs. But the Tapp鈥檚 don鈥檛 believe you have to do such a thing. There鈥檚 no need to put yourself through that strain and spend all that extra money. Because if you have talent, you鈥檒l be found.

鈥淎 lot of my teammates in college grew up only playing volleyball, and they are so skilled,鈥� Paige Tapp said. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e been able to make sure that their fundamentals are perfect since they were 10 years old. But I think playing multiple sports like Hannah and I did really helped too. So if they feel pressure to play just one sport because they want to get to the next level and play at a high level, that shouldn鈥檛 be the case. Even if they鈥檙e not focusing on volleyball year-round, I know they鈥檙e focusing on getting better as an athlete and becoming more well-rounded as an individual.鈥�

The social media craze is also a huge difference. The Tapp sisters only communicated with coaches via email throughout the recruiting process. Now, Instagram and Twitter are the main ways that some coaches discover and recruit players.

鈥淵eah that鈥檚 crazy to me,鈥� Paige Tapp said. 鈥淲e got Instagram when I was a senior in high school. It鈥檚 a whole new world for me.鈥�

The wild, crazy world of recruiting got a whole lot easier for the Tapp鈥檚 once they graduated from Minnesota in 2017. There were no NCAA regulations to follow. It was a free game.

鈥淭here鈥� are really no rules after college, so you can talk to any coach at any time and anyone can contact you,鈥� Paige Tapp said. 鈥淪o it makes it so much easier because you鈥檙e never second-guessing yourself and wondering if you鈥檙e doing something wrong by responding to a coach. That鈥檚 so nice. You get an agent after college too, and he navigates that and takes control of the communication between various club teams.鈥�

But the Tapp鈥檚 leaned on some of the same strategies that they used in high school when they got to sorting through offers from club teams. Fit matters greatly. The fit at Minnesota was perfect because it was an elite program and it was close to home. The Tapp鈥檚 supporting cast could help them with anything they ever needed. They constantly were looking for the right fit before they signed each and every contract overseas.

鈥淵ou can get paid a lot and go somewhere that鈥檚 undesirable,鈥� Paige explained. 鈥淵ou can meet really cool players and make really good friends and go to awesome places. So you just have to play that balance of getting paid, the lifestyle, if the club is professional and will take care of you and choose your best option. Thankfully, there are enough American players so you can see if they played there in the past and what their experience was. You can kind of pick their brain a little bit and make an educated decision.鈥�

The game of recruiting has changed immensely in the last few years. But Tapp believes that college coaches are still looking for similar traits. Your character matters. 20 kills per match are incredible. But if a college program believes that you鈥檒l be a pest in their locker room, then they鈥檒l look for someone else.

鈥淭he coaches are watching what you鈥檙e doing skill-wise, but they鈥檙e watching your character even more,鈥� Paige Tapp said. 鈥淓specially the coaches that you want to play for and the programs that you want to be a part of. They鈥檙e watching everything. They鈥檙e watching if you鈥檙e a good teammate. That鈥檚 what has helped Hannah and me so much. What we do in-between plays and off the court. It鈥檚 about being the best teammate you can be because coaches are absolutely watching and take that into account.鈥�

And please. Don鈥檛 commit in seventh grade.