Daniels twins finally make their mark on Frontier volleyball
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SOUTH DEERFIELD - In their first game with the Frontier Regional girls volleyball team last year, twin sisters Tori and Katy Daniels sat next to each other on the bench with tears in their eyes.
Katy held the stat book, Tori the scorekeeper's book, as the reality of sitting out their entire junior season finally sank in while they sat in the Agawam gymnasium.
"It was really hard," said Katy, now 17. "We wanted to be on the court. We wanted to play with the team. We just wanted to be treated fairly."
The Daniels twins moved with their family from Arizona to South Hadley prior to the 2008 school year and spent their sophomore year there. Unhappy at the school, they decided to transfer to Frontier via school choice.
But they were not granted a waiver to play after transferring, forcing them to sit out the season.
The South Hadley administration "said they believed we were recruited and refused" to grant the waiver, Katy said.
Katy, Tori and Frontier coach Sean MacDonald all vehemently deny any recruitment.
MacDonald "had nothing to do with it," Tori said. "It was in no way recruitment. He got accused of so many things and he still gets that today. But he knows what happened. We know what happened. Anyone who knows us can compare how we were here and in South Hadley, it's night and day. We are so much happier. Once you compare that, there's no question."
Without the waiver, the sisters knew they'd miss the entire season and were given the option to return to South Hadley, where they could still play.
"I sat them down" in the Frontier gym, MacDonald said, "and told them 'If you really want to play, there is a 100 percent chance that you will play if you go back to South Hadley, I really don't think there's a chance for you to play if you stay (at Frontier).'"
Without hesitating, Tori said no.
"We knew there was a possibility that we wouldn't be able to play. But we decided that no matter what, we wanted to be in a safe, comfortable environment," Katy said. "Volleyball is really important to us, but being able to play volleyball for a season or being in an accepting environment is two different things. We chose the school and I couldn't be happier."
'Extremely unhappy'
Tori and Katy Daniels moved with their family to South Hadley when their mother, Lori Souder, became the pastor at Center Church in 2008.
The duo enjoyed terrific sophomore seasons on the Tigers' volleyball team, leading the squad to a program-best 17-3 record and its first-ever Western Massachusetts Division 3 Tournament semifinal appearance. Both players were named Gazette first-team all-stars.
But while they were enjoying success on the court, life off the court was a struggle.
"I remember when we were going to move, I was happy that volleyball was a fall sport because you meet people that way," Katy said. "At first, things were going okay, but once the season was over, it was just like we all separated and things got worse. It wasn't very pleasant for us.
She added, "It was almost unbearable. We didn't want to go to school. We felt like we needed to be somewhere where we felt more comfortable."
The two felt ignored and isolated by their classmates, unaccepted as the new kids in school.
"The entire time, we were extremely unhappy," Tori said. "It was not a normal high school experience. The South Hadley school community was really unfriendly. The kids went to preschool together through high school. No one was really interested in making new friends. There were some nice people there, definitely, but we just thought we should experience something different."
Meanwhile, Tori played club volleyball for MacDonald, and Katy was constantly around the team, which included current Frontier players Cassidy Stankowski, Angelica Perfido and Kendra Ouimette, along with numerous other players from around western Mass.
"The team accepted (Tori) and they accepted me," Katy said. "I was always around. I was the manager, I was the mascot. It was like a whole new experience. We forgot what it was like to be accepted like that."
They both played in the Bay State Games, also under MacDonald, that summer. Around that time, they pitched their parents on transferring to Frontier Regional.
"Instead of starting over at a different school, why not go somewhere where we already had friends?" Tori said. "We were really, really unhappy in South Hadley and we had some amazing friends at Longmeadow, at Frontier and some other schools."
Katy added, "Having friends there made us want to be where they were."
'Move on and create a new life'
Tori and Katy Daniels knew they were asking a lot of their family, but they were also desperate for a change.
Souder told her daughters to research the possibility and work out a plan for getting to and from South Deerfield every day.
"We're truly committed to our kids and their education and their happiness," Souder said. "They wowed us in terms of their true commitment and desire, their promises and their vision. They knew they needed to move on and create a new life."
They put together a PowerPoint presentation, including a plan to get jobs to help pay for gas and do extra chores around the house to make up for time lost on the road.
Seeing her daughters' passion for the change, and witnessing the emotional struggles they had gone through the prior year, Souder agreed.
"Their sophomore year was a painful year," she said. "They were fortunate to have two friends that supported them, but every time we left the parking lot it was as if I was releasing them from some alien place. They had some faculty supporting them and a counselor giving support, but we are a low-maintenance family and I kept thinking something was going to click for them. But it never did."
So the commuting began, sometimes three times per day, as the Daniels sisters enrolled at Frontier in the fall of 2009.
'A lot of criticism'
The whispers began immediately, from some who believed MacDonald had recruited Tori and Katy Daniels to play for his powerhouse program at Frontier, something the eighth-year coach strongly denies.
"I didn't recruit them. I did not recruit them in any way," he said. "Both of them played on the Bay State team in the summer and Tori played on a juniors team, the Western Mass. Juniors, that I coached. But I think I've probably coached 125 or 130 different girls from 25 different high schools. Who could come and not look fishy, whether it is or not? And certainly, it wasn't."
Both Tori and Katy said they hated seeing MacDonald face such allegations in the volleyball community.
"I felt really bad, but I think the bottom line was that Sean wanted us to be happy. He didn't want us going to a school that wasn't accepting," Katy said. "He's a pretty tough guy. I think he endured a lot of criticism. I'm really thankful for the opportunity to go here. Without that (chance), I don't know what would have happened."
The South Hadley administration was among those who believed the girls were recruited, and refused to grant the waiver.
"I understand the spirit of the transfer rule," MacDonald said. "When you compare it to other things, though, they sat out 22 matches because they wanted to get a better high school environment. ... To leave the school for a better environment, you have to sit out 22 matches, but if you get caught selling heroin, you have to sit out five."
'Really heartbreaking'
Just four months after Tori and Katy Daniels started classes at their new school, their old one became a lightning rod when another new student, freshman Phoebe Prince, committed suicide.
Prince, 15, had moved to South Hadley from Ireland in the fall of 2009 and killed herself at her home on Jan. 14 after she was reportedly bullied by fellow students for months. The suicide has brought international attention to the problem of bullying and devastated a few former new kids at South Hadley.
"I was shocked because I couldn't believe that something that tragic would happen. But also, I wasn't too surprised, even when I found out she was a new student there," Tori said. "I think she definitely had sort of a different experience, like she had friends, so it wasn't the exact situation, but I think she definitely experienced the same type of South Hadley person that we had experienced. It was really heartbreaking for me to hear that."
The sisters agreed that they were lucky to have each other when they were struggling at the school.
"Looking back at it, I don't know what I would have done without my sister. We got through it together," Katy said. "I relied on her a lot and I think she relied on me a lot. Having her was definitely a comfort."
'Never regretted the decision'
After sitting out their entire junior season, Tori and Katy Daniels have enjoyed a storybook senior year heading into Saturday's state Division 3 championship game.
The Red Hawks are 25-0 led by a deep squad that includes standout setter Tori and super hitter Katy. More importantly, the sisters are delighted to be a part of the team and the school.
"I never regretted the decision at all," said Katy, who has taken over the commuting duties after getting her driver's license. "It was completely not an option" to go back to South Hadley.
Souder, meanwhile, has worked in the community to help it heal and change from the Prince suicide.
"I am committed to South Hadley. I'm in here for the long haul," she said. "I've worked with the high school this year and the town. The kids know I'm here. It's not like we're walking away from South Hadley. Something had to change and personally, as a parent, I knew it was about my kids' happiness.
"But South Hadley is changing. People have awakened."
Jim Pignatiello can be reached at jpignatiello@gazettenet.com.
Comments
Frontier Volley ball story misses the full story
The November 19 Gazette story “Worth the Wait” quoted the Daniels teenage girls about the difficulty they had in adjusting to South Hadley. It quoted their mother, Rev. Lori Souder, saying, "Something had to change and personally, as a parent, I knew it was about my kids' happiness. But South Hadley is changing. People have awakened."
Those of us who are natives of South Hadley have been stung since January by the criticisms of South Hadley as an unwelcoming place. Some criticism, like that from the Daniels girls, has made us realize that our town we thought was friendly has not always been so.
However, in her comments, Rev. Souder did not do herself justice. Unknown to most people in South Hadley, she has worked quietly since February to help South Hadley heal. She has counseled people touched by the tragedy of a suicide, helped the schools respond, and comforted those in need. She has preached with eloquence about the need for compassion, and for making our community more inclusive. More importantly, she has lived and demonstrated that compassion, including to those not even affiliated with her church.
Some South Hadley residents may be troubled again by a reminder that as a town, we need to do better. Fortunately, long time residents and new residents are now pulling together through our new Youth Commission, our suicide prevention effort, and the good Count Me In group. Rev. Souder and her family, though still new to South Hadley are helping us make ourselves a better community, slowly but surely. As she said, “South Hadley is changing.” She is right, and it is changing for the better, thanks in part to the work of many, including Rev. Souder, to help us become the better place we know we really are.
Sincerely,
Robert G. Judge