Taking Sides, Giving Play at Pamlico County Middle School

The Craven County activity bus appears late. As it quickly rounds the bend of the U-shaped entry to Pamlico County Middle School and goes over a speed bump, the teenagers inside lean and pop up off their seats.


In the shade of trees behind the gym, Pamlico County’s Middle School football team listens to their coach while taking a knee. On the sidewalk to the side, cheerleaders gather for practice. The gym is taken.


It is 3:30 in the afternoon, fifteen minutes after the final class bell has rung and 30 minutes before the start of the Hurricanes’ Middle School volleyball game against West Craven Middle School.


Inside the gym, more than 10 volleyballs launch in the air at an uneven tempo, everywhere. The volleyball net is up and the Hurricanes are taking advantage of the time—and space—to practice before their opponents join them.


Most of the 7th- and 8th-grade girls set and bump balls in pairs. At one end of the gym, other players launch serves into the thick yellow theater curtain that closes off the stage.


Today, the teams are scheduled to play two games in order to economize on the travel between rural schools like Pamlico and Craven County. One trip instead of two. This also makes their volleyball season just one month long instead of two.


Craven’s team walks in; the court must be shared. Pamlico’s 15 young women line up under the basketball hoop and proceed to run, hop, skip warmups in a line. Then, Coach Eric Hardison orders more drills, yelling the name of a player for a specific hit--their pregame warmup.


Suddenly, both teams line up at opposite ends of the court. A whistle blows and they rush to grab multiple volley balls from a basket near the net. They rush back to their lines at the far ends of the court to serve to each other as hard as possible. Many rogue balls fly into the stands where parents and siblings sit and a few classmates eat rainbow ribbon taffy like spaghetti. The practice looks like an intense game of dodge-ball.


The concession stand is now open; the smell of popcorn fills the gym. In the bleachers, mothers discuss how to get their daughters more volleyball practice when the short season ends.


Then, the Hurricanes gather and sit on the floor. With hands clasped and bowed heads, they pray out loud. When finished, they stand and turn to Coach Hardison, who, hands on his hips, calls the young women into a new huddle.

“Okay, we are serving first. We don’t know what they have,” he says, continuing with instructions for the first set. Then, their fists raised to the center of the their circle, they look directly in each others eyes and yell, "Go 'Canes!"


The referee, positioned in his place on a ladder near the top of the net, blows his whistle. Six young women from each team rush to take their place on either side. They are ready, knees bent, shifting their weight from leg to leg. Another whistle. The game begins.

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