Life on Campus
Shannon Thompson may be from sunny California, but the more unpredictable, sometimes harsh, New England weather didn’t stop her from moving across the country to find a new home and family in the form of the Beacons women’s volleyball team.
UMass Boston's volleyball team has won three straight Little East Conference Tournament Championships under the leadership of Coach Terry Condon.
In 2010, the team advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight for the first time in program history.
“One of the reasons why I came to UMass Boston was for Coach Terry Condon," Thompson says. "She played at UCLA; she is one of the greatest volleyball players of our time. She’s very humble, but she knows her volleyball."
Thompson, an exercise and health sciences major, was named New England Region Rookie of the Year her freshman year and the 2010 New England Women’s Volleyball Association Player of the Year her sophomore year. Her junior year, she was named to the NCAA East Region All-Tournament team, an American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-American (Third Team selection), an All-New England Region selection, the Little East Conference Offensive Player of the Year, Conference Tournament MVP, and AVCA Division III National Player of the Week.
She says athletics at UMass Boston is like one big family.
“All the athletes know each other, we all hang out together, we go to each other’s games, and we support each other," she says. "It’s like one big family, which is really nice coming from across the country."
