One ball for another Former football player nds success in new sport volleyball

Kayla Akil Roundup Reporter

One of the legends in basketball, Michael Jordan showed being a dual athlete and mastering two sports was not an easy task given his flop with the White Sox baseball team.

Pierce Collge athlete Ike Nwachie proved that it was very possible to become a dual athlete and triumph in two sports.

Nwachie formerly played for the Pierce football team and chose to cross over to volleyball where he is now one of the clutch players in the game. A native of Burbank, Nwachie gained the respect of teammates and the coach as he plays with equal intensity and power as he did on the football field.

“I come prepared equally for both games and play with the same level of intensity but volleyball is a little more carefree,” Nwachie said.

Volleyball head coach Lance

Walker seemed impressed with Nwachie’s performance in the season.

“He’s exactly what we want in the program: very respectable. We feed him the ball as much as we can,” Walker said.

Nwachie was quick to explain his enjoyment of his bond with the Brahmas.

“It’s been a rough year for us, but we feel pretty confident. The chemistry is really great on the team,” Nwachie said.

With his eyes on Pepperdine University and CSUN, Nwachie wishes to play volleyball or football at a four year college. Nwachie also plans to play volleyball overseas.

Volleyball coach Lance Walker stated his tenacity for the sport.

How will unionizing athletes affect the game?

I school in terms of revenue, makes over 163 million dollars a year. The NCAA as a whole has an income of 871.6 million dollars.

Ethan Hanson

Assistant Editor

The future is at stake for college athletics, and it is happening in Illinois where football players at Northwestern University are unionizing and trying to reap the benefits that are given to numerous Division I schools.

How is this in relation to Pierce one may ask? In its recent history of having athletics, Pierce College has proven that it can get players out of the community college level and make them ready to play against national competition.

Players like former wide receiver Jaelen Strong, now at Arizona State and linebacker Marcus Jenkins Moore, now at Kansas University and most recently tight end Isaac Ijalana are coming into this new world of athletics and academics.

“He was a red shirt last year but is a very humble player, has great work ethic, and will be returning next year hopefully,” Walker said.

Nwachie’s football physique is noticeable in games with his tall figure looming in the backcourt from an opponent’s view on the opposite side of the net.

“I always told him he’s a volleyball player confused in a football player’s body,” Walker said.

Joseph Roberson, Nwachie’s former Personal Development 40 professor said Nwachie is very committed.

“He is persistent. I watched him emotionally mature for over a year. Very proud of him. He gained 20 pounds solid muscle in the past year,” he said.