The 2024-25 Rams Reflect is the 10th in a series of annual collections. Senior captains and representatives of Suffolk teams have been invited to contribute viewpoints based on personal experience from both their senior seasons and full varsity careers at Suffolk University.
For a complete listing of past and present Rams’ Reflections, click here.
Jayla Martinez, Women's Volleyball | Hometown: Santa Fe, N.M. | Major: Law and Public Policy
It is so funny to think that a couple of people handpicked each of us, simply based on our ability to keep a volleyball off the ground never imagining that we would become family.
Moving across the country to a city you had visited once was a very intimidating feat, but the task immediately became much more manageable walking in with 12 built-in friendships. The
community that was built not just on the volleyball team, but the whole Suffolk Athletic Department made it feel like there was a friend around every corner. When I look back on my time playing volleyball for Suffolk University there are only a handful of actual matches that I will remember, obviously beating Gordon in the quarterfinals junior year is a game I will never forget, but that is beside the point. The rest of my memories are reserved for the time spent with the amazing women I was so privileged to call teammates.
The majority of my time in college was spent several stories underground in the Ridgeway basement and I can honestly say I would not trade that time for the world. In four wonderful years, I got to be a part of 36 Friday morning practices, 49 shared meals on a bus, 70 wins (and some losses, but who is counting), and one wedding. These girls have all given me a different outlook on life and have changed me for the better. We were each brought together through our shared love of volleyball and now we are forever bonded. Scott Blanchard and Sarah Hollis picked the girls I will forever consider my family, and for that, I am eternally grateful.
Being part of the Suffolk volleyball team has brought me more love and friendship than I ever thought possible. Every single girl that I have had the privilege of playing with over the years has helped shape me as a person. I will always be grateful to volleyball for bringing me the chance to know these women and to be a part of their lives. I will forever be thankful for the thousands of home-cooked meals courtesy of my favorite chef, roommate, and best friend, McKenna Keowen. I will always cherish the countless late-night conversations with Morgan Kelsey where our laughter would give way to tears and our hugs become a cure for the homesickness. And to Julia Leavey and my second family, I will be eternally grateful for the numerous holidays and dinners that you have so graciously allowed me to crash. These women, and every other member of the Suffolk volleyball team, have changed my life for the better.
To any incoming freshmen, I am so jealous that you get to be around these girls for a few more years. Cherish the warm-up dance parties while Coach is trying to give a speech. Lean on the girls after an upsetting loss and lift them in triumph after a great victory. Being a part of this team can be the most fulfilling and loving experience if you let it. Even though my time of wearing navy and gold may be over, just know that it is a privilege to stand on the court with those girls and to savor every moment. Being a Ram allows you to be part of such a special community, even if being part of that community means you have to fight over court time with the soccer team in the winter. One day you will walk onto the Suffolk court for the first time –albeit probably freezing – and before you know it, you will blink and be hugging your best friends on the court for the very last time. Enjoy it, because it goes by way too fast.