Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
Gael Spotlight | Brown Brings Perspective to Beach Expansion
5/1/2023 9:43:00 AM | General, Women's Beach Volleyball
The Common Interest Management Gael Spotlight is a monthly feature story about Saint Mary's Athletics and a behind-the-scenes look at the Gaels.
MORAGA, Calif. — This school year has been a monumental shift for Saint Mary's beach volleyball. For the first time in the ten-year history of the program, they are shifting away from a dual-program with the indoor team and expanded to feature to true, beach-specific student-athletes.
One of the original Gaels that came in before this expansion is Karmin Brown, who has been one of the best beach volleyball players for Saint Mary's since her arrival. She has seen the program flourish and grow since her arrival to Moraga as a freshman, and her perspective is unlike that of any of her teammates.
Brown has seen the program feature mostly indoor players from the moment she joined the Gaels in the fall of 2019. That roster had six players who did beach only, and it dropped down to five over the last two seasons. This year, the number of beach specific student-athletes more than doubled, up to 11 on the roster, as the program begins to truly separate itself from the indoor scene.
"I'd say so far, so good. I'm really happy with how things have gone," says Brown when asked about the first year of having a much larger beach roster. "I'm the only senior and then we have one other returner [Allie Cataldo]. We've taken a lot of what we learned from Rob [Browning] and the indoor program, and then we've kind of shaped our own identity in a way this season."
This new version of the beach volleyball program is built differently than it's been in the past. With a roster full of student-athletes who are only playing beach volleyball, there's a need for a true, full-time coach. Enter Janice Harrer, who joined the team this year after helping put together the beach volleyball program at the University of Oregon.
"Janice really pushes us to sort of like have our own personalities," Brown explains. "You're supposed to act a certain way and behave a certain way and she really like pushes us to not always be the same cut as everybody else. And you kind of learned that even growing up playing indoor, you know, there's a certain way to act. I think we kind of like that we're different."
Brown continued, "we don't like to follow the status quo, sort of. I don't think that we have the exact same things as maybe a USC or UCLA, but it doesn't mean that we can't be good, right? I don't think I have a word to encompass our identity, but we don't mind being the 'underdogs.'"
All of this change during her senior season has also put Brown in more of a leadership role, being one of the two seniors on the roster. While it might not have been an easy or quick process, she feels confident in how it has gone during this new season.
"We just have so many new girls and I kind of get to hopefully lead them in a good direction and take things that I've learned from girls in the past and our coaches that aren't necessarily coaching us now and sort of carry that on in a way," Brown says. "I'm really impressed with everybody and everyone's commitment, even in the small amount of time. It took a minute to get everybody there, but I'm really proud of how everyone just like has the same goals and everyone is really bought in."
Though Brown has not been one of the individuals to do both indoor and beach volleyball at Saint Mary's, Brown knows the differences between the two and what it takes to be a star on both the sand and hardwood. That goes back to her high school days at Folsom High School, where she was a three-year team captain while starting the first-ever beach volleyball team on campus.
It's not just the physical ability on the court that changes, but the way you communicate with your teammates is different in beach volleyball. It's all about honesty, Brown says, and you can't hold things deep down inside.
It's just you and your partner and there's no subs, there's no other people to put in so you just have to be honest and kind of blunt with each other," details Brown. "Whereas other teams and other sports, you beat around the bush. There's just no time to beat around the bush. You just have to say, 'that was a terrible set, I cannot hit that,' or whatever it is. Putting your ego aside and sort of realizing that you both have the same goals and just communicating what you need from each other. We both want to win. I'm not here to hurt your feelings."
Seeing that she is just one of the two beach-only returners on this year's roster, Brown is a veteran who has taken on a bigger leadership role with the team. That performance has been evident in her performance with her partner this season, Hannah Couch. The freshman from Lake Tapps, Washington has been paired with Brown all season long, and the results have been 16 wins, the second most among any pair on this year's team.
Seeing so much immediate success between a senior and a freshman is certainly against the grain in beach volleyball. Communication with that partner comes with experience, and that's hard to gain as a freshman, especially when compared to the experience that a four-year starter has accumulated. Even still, Brown raved about how easy it has been to find that successful chemistry with Couch.
"Hannah is like the most mature freshman I've ever met, so that helps a lot," Brown says. She's just super wise and she just does a great job at like communicating. Sometimes I get on her and say, 'you can be meaner to me at times, you can take ownership. I know I'm a senior but seriously, if I'm playing bad, yell at me or whatever." Brown laughed at finishing that statement, but proceeded," She is just super beyond her years, like an old soul. She doesn't feel like a freshman at all."
Another part of the change came from the NCAA level, where they permitted fall semester competitions for the first time. The Gaels sent individuals to two different tournaments, one in Huntington Beach, and one in Huntsville (Alabama), while scheduling two exhibitions. Not only were those beneficial were all of the new faces on this year's team, they also proved to be a huge boost for Brown.
"The competition aspect of it is nice in terms of first game jitters. Those still come out in the spring, but you get those out of a way to a degree," explained Brown. "You also get to see where you pair up against new girls. I went to Alabama with Sadie [Shipman] and the competition was insane. I was playing the best of the best and we really got to see where we fell in the order of all those teams and their top pairs. It was cool to put yourself in the mix."
Perhaps the best, immediate news that the beach program could receive? Brown anticipates returning for her fifth season of eligibility. "It wasn't always the plan," laughed Brown when asked about her future. "But I am so excited for the future of the program."
As the program continues to evolve, if there are more players like Karmin Brown coming to Saint Mary's for beach volleyball, the program will be in great shape.
MORAGA, Calif. — This school year has been a monumental shift for Saint Mary's beach volleyball. For the first time in the ten-year history of the program, they are shifting away from a dual-program with the indoor team and expanded to feature to true, beach-specific student-athletes.
One of the original Gaels that came in before this expansion is Karmin Brown, who has been one of the best beach volleyball players for Saint Mary's since her arrival. She has seen the program flourish and grow since her arrival to Moraga as a freshman, and her perspective is unlike that of any of her teammates.
Brown has seen the program feature mostly indoor players from the moment she joined the Gaels in the fall of 2019. That roster had six players who did beach only, and it dropped down to five over the last two seasons. This year, the number of beach specific student-athletes more than doubled, up to 11 on the roster, as the program begins to truly separate itself from the indoor scene.
"I'd say so far, so good. I'm really happy with how things have gone," says Brown when asked about the first year of having a much larger beach roster. "I'm the only senior and then we have one other returner [Allie Cataldo]. We've taken a lot of what we learned from Rob [Browning] and the indoor program, and then we've kind of shaped our own identity in a way this season."
This new version of the beach volleyball program is built differently than it's been in the past. With a roster full of student-athletes who are only playing beach volleyball, there's a need for a true, full-time coach. Enter Janice Harrer, who joined the team this year after helping put together the beach volleyball program at the University of Oregon.
"Janice really pushes us to sort of like have our own personalities," Brown explains. "You're supposed to act a certain way and behave a certain way and she really like pushes us to not always be the same cut as everybody else. And you kind of learned that even growing up playing indoor, you know, there's a certain way to act. I think we kind of like that we're different."
Brown continued, "we don't like to follow the status quo, sort of. I don't think that we have the exact same things as maybe a USC or UCLA, but it doesn't mean that we can't be good, right? I don't think I have a word to encompass our identity, but we don't mind being the 'underdogs.'"
All of this change during her senior season has also put Brown in more of a leadership role, being one of the two seniors on the roster. While it might not have been an easy or quick process, she feels confident in how it has gone during this new season.
"We just have so many new girls and I kind of get to hopefully lead them in a good direction and take things that I've learned from girls in the past and our coaches that aren't necessarily coaching us now and sort of carry that on in a way," Brown says. "I'm really impressed with everybody and everyone's commitment, even in the small amount of time. It took a minute to get everybody there, but I'm really proud of how everyone just like has the same goals and everyone is really bought in."
Though Brown has not been one of the individuals to do both indoor and beach volleyball at Saint Mary's, Brown knows the differences between the two and what it takes to be a star on both the sand and hardwood. That goes back to her high school days at Folsom High School, where she was a three-year team captain while starting the first-ever beach volleyball team on campus.
It's not just the physical ability on the court that changes, but the way you communicate with your teammates is different in beach volleyball. It's all about honesty, Brown says, and you can't hold things deep down inside.
It's just you and your partner and there's no subs, there's no other people to put in so you just have to be honest and kind of blunt with each other," details Brown. "Whereas other teams and other sports, you beat around the bush. There's just no time to beat around the bush. You just have to say, 'that was a terrible set, I cannot hit that,' or whatever it is. Putting your ego aside and sort of realizing that you both have the same goals and just communicating what you need from each other. We both want to win. I'm not here to hurt your feelings."
Seeing that she is just one of the two beach-only returners on this year's roster, Brown is a veteran who has taken on a bigger leadership role with the team. That performance has been evident in her performance with her partner this season, Hannah Couch. The freshman from Lake Tapps, Washington has been paired with Brown all season long, and the results have been 16 wins, the second most among any pair on this year's team.
Seeing so much immediate success between a senior and a freshman is certainly against the grain in beach volleyball. Communication with that partner comes with experience, and that's hard to gain as a freshman, especially when compared to the experience that a four-year starter has accumulated. Even still, Brown raved about how easy it has been to find that successful chemistry with Couch.
"Hannah is like the most mature freshman I've ever met, so that helps a lot," Brown says. She's just super wise and she just does a great job at like communicating. Sometimes I get on her and say, 'you can be meaner to me at times, you can take ownership. I know I'm a senior but seriously, if I'm playing bad, yell at me or whatever." Brown laughed at finishing that statement, but proceeded," She is just super beyond her years, like an old soul. She doesn't feel like a freshman at all."
Another part of the change came from the NCAA level, where they permitted fall semester competitions for the first time. The Gaels sent individuals to two different tournaments, one in Huntington Beach, and one in Huntsville (Alabama), while scheduling two exhibitions. Not only were those beneficial were all of the new faces on this year's team, they also proved to be a huge boost for Brown.
"The competition aspect of it is nice in terms of first game jitters. Those still come out in the spring, but you get those out of a way to a degree," explained Brown. "You also get to see where you pair up against new girls. I went to Alabama with Sadie [Shipman] and the competition was insane. I was playing the best of the best and we really got to see where we fell in the order of all those teams and their top pairs. It was cool to put yourself in the mix."
Perhaps the best, immediate news that the beach program could receive? Brown anticipates returning for her fifth season of eligibility. "It wasn't always the plan," laughed Brown when asked about her future. "But I am so excited for the future of the program."
As the program continues to evolve, if there are more players like Karmin Brown coming to Saint Mary's for beach volleyball, the program will be in great shape.
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Players Mentioned
/ Women's Beach Volleyball
/ Women's Beach Volleyball
/ Women's Beach Volleyball
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