Lehigh University Athletics
In memory of mom
10/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
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There, under the hot rays of a summer sun, young Brittany Dickinson would watch on as her mother graced the greens of outdoor volleyball tournaments. As a tot she would roll volleyballs around the grass meanwhile her mom, Val Dickinson, who had always loved volleyball and played for Principia College in St. Louis, Mo., was lighting a competitive fire under her teammates so they’d all come out as champions. Unknown to Brittany then, she would one day be leading teams with her love of the game and competitive fight just like her mother. Also unknown to her then, she would one day be the starting setter for the Mountain Hawks, the captain of the team, and she’d be doing it all in the memory of her mother.
Last year on Oct. 8, Valerie Dickinson passed away after years of battling cancer, and although Brittany wanted to be with her mother in those last days, Val pleaded with her daughter to go back and play Lafayette, the upcoming match. “I had to play them for her,” Brittany remembers. She also remembers the last time she spoke with her mom on the phone after returning to school. “She wasn’t speaking much at that point, but the last words she said to me that night was ‘I love you. Beat Lafayette.’” She was just so competitive and she loved volleyball so much, Brittany says, that those would be her final words to me.
Needless to say the Lafayette match was a special one, colored with emotion, motivation and memory. The team lined up in front of the American flag, all with green ribbons tied to their hair in memory of Val. And there was Brittany standing with her hand over her chest, underneath which she wore a heart necklace she and her mom both had. As everyone else looked up singing the national anthem and seeing stars and stripes, Brittany looked to the flag and saw memories of her mom: the one that had brought her to her first match, the one that had first bumped around with her in the yard when she bought Brittany a volleyball net for Christmas, the one that had played in an outdoor volleyball tournament with her daughter as her teammate. Her mom was the reason Brittany was here, and this match would be played for her.
As the team prepared for this very match all week despite the sadness, it was Brittany’s strength and persistence to play on, to play through, and to play for her mother that allowed everyone else to be O.K. “She used volleyball as her outlet. She found happiness in her teammates and through the love of the game, and I think she knew that if Val was there, that is exactly what she would have wanted,” teammate Mo McReynolds said.
The preparation and motivation seemed it would be enough as Lehigh beat Lafayette the first two sets. But the Leopards responded by winning the next two sets so it all came down to the fifth and final set. In front of a packed crowd the team fought point by point all the way to 25-24 with only one more point needed for the win. And it would be up to Brittany to serve the last points. As she stood behind the serving line ready to serve match point Brittany could feel Val pulling for her, cheering her on from above just like she had always done in the stands. What was easily the most memorable serve in her athletic career, resulted in a win for the Mountain Hawks and a win for the memory of Val Dickinson.
The two will forever be tied through their mother-daughter bond and their love for volleyball and competitive spirit. And on November 24, 2009 Brittany and Val will have yet another tie to add to the list. Because of their love, talent and commitment to the game, they will be recognized by their induction, together, into The Connecticut Women’s Volleyball Hall of Fame. Marie Lavitt, who nominated the two, said that it is an unwritten rule that inductees must have been inactive for five years before accepted, but this has been voided for Brittany, honored for her performance in high school volleyball and Val, honored for her years of commitment to Officiating Connecticut high school volleyball.
Brittany, who is referred to as “little Val” by Lavitt, is proud that she gets to join her mother in the Hall of Fame and is excited for her mom to be recognized for all of the hard work and hours she gave to Connecticut volleyball, because her mother was so selfless and never needed acknowledgment. Just as her mom committed herself to the success of others, officiating matches and helping out high school coaches, Brittany has devoted herself to the success of Lehigh Volleyball
“I’m going to continue to make her proud,” Dickinson says. “I know she gave me everything to do this, and after a year of overcoming I’ve learned who she taught me to be.”
And that person is one her mother would surely be proud of. “I am inspired by her. I have so much respect and admiration for her as a player and person,” Head Coach Jenny Maurer says about Brittany.
On Friday evening, just one year since the passing of her mother and the unforgettable win against Lafayette, Brittany and her teammates will take on the Leopards yet again at 7 p.m. inside of Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Much has changed in the year since she last stood before a match at home versus Lafayette looking to the flag and thinking of her mother. However, in a year’s time one thing has not changed-- this night will be for her mother, just as they always are.
Written by Maxie McCoy ‘09
