Sisters from Texas Find Joy and Success at Greater Allegheny

By LINDSEY SCOTT

This story is courtesy of a PSUAC partnership with the sports journalism program at Penn State.

Growing up in Mesquite, Texas, volleyball wasn’t on Sueriah Timsah’s radar -- at all. In fact, Timsah sees her introduction to the sport as more of a happy coincidence.

How Timsah’s discovery brought her from Texas to Penn State University Greater Alleghany is part of the story, but what’s an even greater twist is that her younger sister, Nimeira Timsah, ended up at the school as well.

Sueriah was pushed to try every sport by the coaches at her middle school in West Mesquite, near Dallas. Outside of school, she had never heard about volleyball, recalling that the sport wasn’t very popular at that time.

“I didn’t really know much about volleyball at all,” said Sueriah. “I had to have known the basics, maybe I just knew that there was a ball and a net.”

When she stepped onto the court for tryouts, however, it was like she’d been playing all her life.

“I had no clue that I would be decent at it, and it kind of just came naturally to me,” she said. “After tryouts I went home and I said ‘Mom, I’m going to play volleyball.’”

As Sueriah gained experienced over years of playing, she fell for volleyball more and more with every game, spike, set and match. Her passion for the competitiveness and togetherness of the sport deepened her love for it. Now she is a senior at Greater Alleghany and an outside hitter who has appeared in every match this season. She was the team’s third-leading scorer with a total of 252 points.

“When you get a block on someone, or you slam the ball down and you turn around and the whole team is going crazy, it’s just one of those feelings,” said Sueriah. “I really love the sport. My passion comes from how much I love it.”

Nimeira, the younger of the two sisters and a sophomore defensive specialist, saw how much her sister loved the sport, and decided that she too wanted to give volleyball a try, too.

“I started playing in middle school,” said Nimeira. “I tried volleyball when my sister started. I would go practice with her (as a guest) and I thought it was fun.”

Despite years of playing for the same school, the two didn’t get the chance to play together until this season.

“I initially came here for the Penn State degree,” said Sueriah. “But then I really, truly wanted to play volleyball, and this was one of the best offers that I had.”

Another reason Sueriah mentioned as to why she chose PSUGA was because she saw a team that she could win with.

“I really hate losing, losing sucks,” said Sueriah. “I lost every game my (high school) junior and senior year, including my senior night game.”

When Nimeira started scouting out teams to play for in college, Sueriah asked head coach Alyssa Finocchi if there was a spot on the team for her younger sister.

“I didn’t convince her to come,” Sueriah said. “I told her that this would be a cool opportunity to play together. I knew she wanted to play volleyball in college, so (I said) I’ll talk to my coach and see what we can figure out.”

It turned out to be a nice fit.

“I knew that this was an option because Sueriah went here,” Nimeira said. “I was looking at other schools, (and when) I was looking I just felt ‘Hey, why not go to Penn State?’ So, I came here.”

When Nimeira accepted her offer to play at PSUGA, Sueriah wanted everyone to know that Nimeira was not brought in to fill her big sister’s shoes.

“I made sure that before she got here, that (my teammates) weren’t saying ‘oh Sueriah’s little sister.’ She is my sister but her name is Nimeira,. (She has) her own identity and her own expectations for herself,’’ Sueriah said. “She has her own skills. We are related but we are not the same.”

After spending a short time with the two athletes, it becomes apparent that the sisters by no means share the same personality.

“We live on campus together, but we don’t live in the same room,” Sueriah said. “I wanted to give her space to make her own group of friends and not be coddled underneath me. I didn’t want her to be under my shadow, I definitely made that known to her before she got here.”

Because the 2020 season was canceled due to COVID-19, this fall was the first time the two sisters had the chance to play together.

Early on in the season, Nimeria said that she was not getting the playing time that she thought she might. At that time, understanding that coaching decision was difficult for her.

“I am currently going through the hardest thing ever right now in my life for volleyball,” she said. “Even though I’m not playing on the court, I’m still contributing to the team. It’s just for now.”

Now, with the PSUAC season under their belt, both Timsahs have learned valuable lessons from the season that they shared.

“A really big lesson that I have learned during this season is to stay determined and work hard even on the days when you don’t feel like doing it,” Nimeira said. “I’ve also learned to always look at the positive side of things and live in the moment, because -- who knows -- this could be the last time you ever get to touch a volleyball.”

Nimeira finished her first collegiate season off with 34 digs. In the 11 matches she appeared in, she averaged 1.17 digs per set. She accumulated six points for the team this season, and only had two service errors throughout the entire season.

With this season being her last, Sueriah said that she learned to always play with intention.

“Every move, every point, and every play must have intent behind it to decrease the amount of errors we make and to also come out with the win in the end,” Sueriah said. “With a set plan and a hardworking team who are all on one accord there isn’t anything we can’t do.”

Early in the season, Suriah was confident in her team’s ability to make it to the conference playoffs. After surpassing that goal and winning the PSUAC title, defeating Penn State Schuykill 3-0 in the championship, the sisters can look back on their first and last season playing together with fond memories.

There’s also more to look forward to. PSUGA will play next Thursday (Nov. 11) in the USCAA Division II national tournament against Penn State Mont Alto in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

During the PSUAC title match, “I looked back right before the whistle was blown to shout some encouraging words to the girls and I saw my sister looking right at me with so much light in her eyes,” Sueriah said. “It made me so proud to be able to share that moment with her. She is the heart of our team and I am so thankful that I get to bring her along on this journey with me.”