Ithaca’s Grange commits to D1 volleyball

Ithaca High School has a strong history of producing Division I student-athletes. Cameron Grange is the latest Little Red to join those ranks, as she announced her commitment to play volleyball at Canisius College on Nov. 22.

“This was probably one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make,” Grange said. “But I think what it came down to was the environment that was there. I really appreciate and love the athletic feel that Canisius has.”

Grange takes her talents west to Buffalo, where Canisius is coming off a 13-15 campaign under first-year head coach Tom Hanna, good enough for fourth place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). The Golden Eagles fell in three sets to Siena in the MAAC quarterfinals. As an outside hitter, Grange will aid the Golden Eagles’ attack as they continue their pursuit for a first ever conference title.

“[I’ll] bring a lot of competition, a lot of good energy, being positive and just helping out all around,” Grange said.

Ever since Grange began playing sports, she always wanted to pursue collegiate athletics. But her first love wasn’t volleyball, as she started out playing basketball and lacrosse.

“I never wanted to play volleyball because my sister [Casey] played volleyball,” Grange said. “But then she and one of my very first coaches got me into playing, and that’s when I found the love for that sport, and I decided I wanted to play in college.”

Grange will look to have just as successful a time in college as Casey has at Alfred University. This past season, Casey became the first Saxon to win the Empire 8 Rookie of the Year outright and was named to the All-Empire 8 Second Team. Although Grange only got to play one season with her older sister at Ithaca High, she acknowledged how big of an impact Casey has had on her volleyball career.

“Ever since I started playing in eighth grade, she’s always pushed me continuously, very hard, and I really appreciate that,” Grange said.

Like her sister, Grange also played under a new head coach this season, as Sydney Trumble took over the program. The new era in Little Red volleyball got off to a tremendous start after going unbeaten in the regular season, dropping just 11 sets overall.

“She’s a really good coach,” Grange said. “She treats all of us like we can come to her for anything, so it was like [having a] coach but it was also like having a friend.”

While the regular season was so dominant, the Little Red were unable to translate that into postseason triumph. Ithaca fell to Vestal in the STAC championship 3-2 but showed great resilience by coming from behind two sets down to force a decisive fifth set. They were then swept by Corning in the Section IV Class AA final. Despite coming up short in the playoffs, Grange took many positives away from her final season with the Little Red.

“I think it went very well,” Grange said. “We all really liked each other. It wasn’t just a sport to any of us. We all felt like we had a family bond. It’s something you can’t find everywhere, and I’m glad Ithaca brought that to us all.”

Grange has been the main attacking threat for the Little Red all season, consistently racking up kills and earning a spot on the STAC West/Metro All-Conference team for the second straight year. As Grange prepares to embark on her journey with Canisius, there are plenty of valuable lessons she learned from her time at Ithaca High.

“Even in the rough times that you have, you’re not going to win every game,” Grange said. “So, I say even during the rough times, always have a positive attitude, and no matter what the outcome is, you’re all going to be friends regardless. Just always be positive with each other.”

While Grange has flourished on the court, her lasting memories with the Little Red come off the court with countless rap battles on the bus rides home from matches.

“It was just a really fun time because we were all friends,” Grange said. “There was never any drama. We all just got along really well.”

Grange concluded, “[I’ll miss] the family feeling and just not being able to see everyone again like that, coming into the locker room every day. We would always talk to each other about everything. That’s something I’ll definitely miss.”

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