Transfer Nina Sharpton key to FAMU volleyball's three-game streak after two-year hiatus
Complacency wasn't an option for Florida A&M volleyball (3-7) coach Gokhan Yilmaz.
Attempting to emulate similar success as 2021's SWAC championship season, Yilmaz placed his team on the proving ground to prepare for the conference grind that begins on Sept. 23 when FAMU heads to Bethune-Cookman.
With five transfers on a roster of 15, the Rattlers endured growing pains as they went winless in their first seven matches. This included an Aug. 31 loss to crosstown school Florida State in which FAMU was swept 3-0 in a valiant effort where they forced extra points early on.
Since then, the Rattlers have compiled three consecutive wins on the season that stems from Sept. 9-10's Elon/NCAT Tournament where they swept their competition in UNC Greensboro, Elon, and North Carolina A&T through the weekend.
"In the preseason, we always play to challenge ourselves and find groups that work well together," Yilmaz said.
"It took us a while to get everybody cleared, too. For the first time, we had a full team last weekend. It was nice to see us finding a couple of different lineups that work well for us and coming back with three wins."
New additions in setter Nina Sharpton (North Carolina State) and defensive specialist Brooke Hudson (Colorado State) have already etched their names in the SWAC.
On Sept. 7, the SWAC named Sharpton the Newcomer and Setter of the Week while Hudson earned a nod for the conference's Defensive Player of the Week.
"Nina is a very good setter. She was recruited very highly out of school, but didn't play in the last years, so it's going to take her a little more time to get adjusted. But she's started very well," Yilmaz said.
"Brooke really came in and stabilized our serving and helping our back row play quite a bit with a lot of leadership qualities.
"They're both doing are doing great. We're expecting a lot from all those kids that joined us this year."
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Making a good first impression
Sharpton, from Palm Beach hasn't taken long to be impactful for FAMU volleyball.
Coming out of Berkeley Prep, she had over 40 Division I schools recruiting her as she arrived to the state of Florida 14-year old a high school freshman when her military father was re-stationed. The well-traveled Sharpton has resided in California, Virginia, Missouri, North Carolina, New York, and Florida.
Two years before her 2018 graduation, she committed to NC State in the spring of 2016.
While with the Wolfpack, Sharpton served as the primary setter and became the first freshman in program history to surpass 1,000 assists in their first season in 2019 — tallying 1,012.
After taking a two-year hiatus from volleyball, Sharpton credits her arrival to FAMU to family ties and a rapport with Yilmaz.
"I actually quit volleyball for two years during COVID. I was living in New York for a year — wasn't going to school or anything, but I liked it there," she said.
"I decided that I missed (volleyball) and wanted to come back. My grandfather went here, and my little brother and aunt goes here. It runs in the family and I knew I wanted to go to an HBCU.
"I reached out to (Yilmaz) in December and that's how I ended up here."
She experienced a full circle moment, competing against her old team in her FAMU debut on Aug. 26 as NC State prevailed 3-0 in the Kansas State Tournament.
"It was weird watching them from across the net. I knew all of them and we played well, so it was really exciting," Sharpton said.
"I talked to my old coaches and teammates. They were super nice and were happy to see me playing again."
Unaware, Sharpton has a significant margin as she leads the SWAC in assists with 216. The current runner-up is Damassy Thompson from Jackson State with 145.
“I didn't even know that," Sharpton said of the conference's statistic leaderboard.
"I bring the experience of playing at an ACC school at a high level. So, I'm trying to bring up the level of play and help us get another conference championship."
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Next on FAMU's schedule
The Rattlers will defend their three-game winning streak during the Jaguar Invitational in three games that spans over two days.
FAMU's first opponent: SEC's Ole Miss (2-5) on Sept. 15. It will be followed by matches against Eastern Kentucky (7-3) and South Alabama (3-6) on Sept. 16.
"This is a tournament that we play quite often. We like to go to South Alabama. It's close by and friends with their coaching staff,” Yilmaz said.
"It's going to be very good. Ole Miss is very good and South Alabama won (Sun Belt) last year. Eastern Kentucky has been winning their matches.
"It's another weekend for us to find team identity and kids that can perform under pressure. We're excited against a Power 5 and a conference champion this weekend."
Once the tournament concludes, FAMU will return to Al Lawson Multipurpose Center for the first time in 15 days to face UAB on Sept. 18.
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Gerald Thomas III covers FAMU athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at gdthomas@gannett.com or on Twitter @3peatgee.
Follow the Tallahassee Democrat on social media at Tallahassee Democrat (Facebook), TallahasseeDemocrat (Instagram), and @TDOnline (Twitter)
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU Volleyball: Newcomer Nina Sharpton making good first impression
