Natasha’s long good bye
It will be an emotional moment for Natasha Desjardins Saturday at 1 p.m. when the Niagara College women’s volleyball team hosts the Mohawk Mountaineers.
The 23-year-old Welland native will be playing her last home game in a Knights’ uniform and she will be honoured as a graduating player. The Saint-Jean-de-Brebeuf alumna has been at Niagara College for six years and has been playing varsity volleyball for five years and varsity soccer for the last two seasons.
“I have graduated from so many programs here and every year it was do I come back or do I not? I am so attached to this team and I am so attached to this school that it is hard to move on,” she said. “It has been such a successful experience and now that it is actually coming to an end, it’s going to hit really hard.”
Desjardins had graduated from the Fitness and Health Promotion (2020) and the Educational Assistant Special Needs Support (2022) and is presently pursuing graduate studies in Autism and Behavioural Sciences in the college’s School of Community Services.
“I don’t really know what is next. Obviously I want to apply to school boards, especially the French school board here because I am a graduate from Saint-Jean-de-Brebeuf. I would love to go back and work there. Both my parents are teachers there as well.”
When her athletic career at Niagara is finally over, she will look to other things to fuel her competitive fires.
“I plan on coming back next year to coach with Tommy just because this group is so promising. They are so young and the future is so bright for the program. I want to coach and still feel that competitive side but other than that I will probably join some leagues around here.”
She is reflective about her time at Niagara.
“Obviously being a student-athlete isn’t the easiest thing but it builds you into what you need to be when you graduate. The biggest thing was always understanding the importance of academics because without it you can’t be an athlete,” she said. “You have to do the student part too to be an athlete. It is a special experience and I can’t really put it into words.”
Desjardins was recruited to play soccer and volleyball at Niagara College but focused solely on the latter her first three years because her volleyball coach didn’t want her playing both sports.
All that changed when Tommy Sloan became head coach of the women’s volleyball program last season.
“When COVID hit, I asked him what he thought of me playing soccer because the seasons didn’t touch last year and I wouldn’t have to miss out on anything. He said that it was something he had always wanted to do and it was something he wasn’t going to hold me back from doing.”
It turned out to be a great turn of events for Desjardins, who was a part of Niagara’s women’s soccer team that won an Ontario Colleges Athletic Association bronze medal last fall.
“We came so close to qualifying for nationals but it was a really big deal for the program. They had never made it that far and they had never medalled so it was special to be a part of the team when that happened for the first time in Niagara College history.”
She has enjoyed considerable success on the volleyball court, winning OCAA silver medals her first two seasons and losing in the quarter-finals. She also got a chance to play in the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association championships when Niagara hosted in her second year,
“That was a really cool experience,” she said. “It showed what you needed to make it that far.”
Her biggest individual accolades came in her fourth year when she was named the OCAA Women’s Volleyball Athlete of the Year and an All Canadian.
“That was something that I never really imagined accomplishing but it was really special.”
Other individual honours she has garnered include: 2020 and 2022 OCAA Women’s Volleyball West Division First Team All Star; two-time CCAA Academic All Canadian and a four-time CCAA Scholar Athlete/OCAA Scholar Athlete.
“It has been nice to medal but the highlights are the teammates I have had and the friends that I have made,” Desjardins said. “It’s crazy because the turn around for college athletes every year is fast. The team is always changing. Although it was hard having new coaches every year (first three years) it was a beautiful experience and it made me the player and the person that I am today.”
