SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. — Picture Day is another step towards a new season for Shippensburg University volleyball.
Picked to finish first in the Eastern Division, these Raiders embrace the target on their back, and don't scare easily.
"I am excited about the leadership that's returning," said Head Coach Leanne Piscotty. "I'm excited about the incoming class and the help that we're going to have there. I think that we're going to have a lot of depth in each of our positions."
In Ship's quest for a crown, having someone with crown experience is helpful.
"In 2022, I competed in the Miss Pennsylvania Teen USA competition. I was just going into it blind, having fun, and I ended up being second runner-up and it kind of lit a fire in me and I wanted to do it again," recalled Elliot Oliphant. "So I competed again last year and then this year I competed before I aged out. I ended up winning the title and it just meant so much to me that it still feels so surreal, even months later."
Pageants are something that Oliphant started when she was young, and the same goes for sports. When you grow up in Western Pa., it's not if you played sports, but how many?
"I'd like to say I did everything in the books, pretty much," laughed Oliphant. "I started tee-ball and then soccer. I did soccer until about ninth grade and then really tried volleyball and fell in love with it. I did a few other things like cross-country and basketball. But I found my true calling in volleyball and track."
This led to volleyball and track calling her to play at the college level.
"She's a very long player. We want to increase the size of our players on our roster because where we play the game, above the net, matters in our sport, and Ellie, is a wonderful human being who has great character," said Coach Piscotty.
"I really like to challenge myself and I figured that if I did it in high school, I could do it in college," said Oliphant. "Once I got here and the coaches worked so well in cooperating with each other and with me about splitting that time between track and volleyball, I just felt like this place is my home."
(In the video above Ship's Maddie Clabaugh, Elliot Oliphant, and Head Coach Leanne Piscotty preview the upcoming 2024 season.)
Balancing college life is never easy, but she has a winning approach when it comes to academics, athletics, and her title as Miss Pennsylvania Teen USA.
"It's really important that I work those things with each other rather than against and show, not only younger girls and women but college-aged students, like myself, that you can do whatever you want to do," said Elliot.
And she wants to use her time with the crown, to emphasize her message that sports are for everyone.
"I've been involved with Special Olympics Pennsylvania and it's important to me. I've been an athlete my whole life and I love to see other athletes doing their thing," said Oliphant.
"It really saddens me to see people with intellectual disabilities, being excluded from things or looked down upon because they're not neurotypical. I would love to spread the word more about Special Olympics and their cause and really open that up to the public."