By River Mitchell
@rivermitchell27
Springfield College men’s volleyball middle blocker Chris Rouleau has improved his game each and every year in his three years on Alden Street. A main focal point for the Pride on the offensive and defensive side of the net, Rouleau has been a steady and consistent performer for the No. 13 Division III team in the country in the AVCA coaches poll.
However, volleyball wasn’t always a love and passion for Rouleau, as Rouleau didn’t get his start until seventh grade.
Growing up in Bay Shore, N.Y., Rouleau and a couple of his friends decided to give volleyball a try. Not playing any sport that season, Rouleau very rapidly fell in love with the sport. He played baseball and football prior to his start in volleyball, Rouleau dropped football, choosing to play volleyball and baseball throughout high school. Rouleau fell in love, and quickly became his favorite sport.
“I’ve never had a bad time playing volleyball,” Rouleau said. “From the start, it was kind of just getting up and hitting the ball hard was a better feeling than I felt striking someone out. Getting a big block, those moments were so fun even when I was in seventh grade.”
Rouleau continued to play throughout middle school and into high school, and recognized around his junior year that this was something he was really good at. This was also around the time that Rouleau’s recruiting process started, where he caught the eye of Springfield men’s volleyball head coach Charlie Sullivan at a camp. Rouleau also has a twin brother, who attended the camp with him. For Sullivan, what stood out to him before his on the court skills was his relationship with his brother and the empathy they showed each other.
“I saw these two guys working together in pairs, and they were both really kind and empathetic toward each other. I’m like, ‘That’s amazing,’” Sullivan said. “That’s what I noticed first about Chris is his relationship skills are phenomenal. Put on top of the fact that he’s a beast and hits the ball really hard, those were the initial things that I was attracted to to try and recruit him to Springfield College.”
Sullivan’s recruiting pitch clearly worked, as Rouleau verbally committed to attend Springfield during his on-campus visit two weeks after the camp. Rouleau also has family connections to Springfield College, as his grandfather played football there.
“It was September of my senior year, and I verbally committed on the spot,” Rouleau said. “Coach was like, ‘We have a spot for you for next year, we’d love to have you.’ I’m like, ‘I can’t really say no.’ There’s nothing wrong with this school.”
After playing a smaller role on the 2021-22 team that fell in the national championship, Rouleau has blossomed into the focal point of the team.
This season, Rouleau produced 196 kills on a .441 hitting percentage, which was good enough to secure him with an AVCA All-American Second Team. He also earned a spot on the AVCA All-Region team, and played a huge role in the Pride securing a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
However, even with his success on the court, what he’s done off the court is even more impressive.
On Friday, Apr. 5, Rouleau was the eighth winner of h the Tom Waddell award due to his contributions with Team IMPACT. The award is given out annually at the Sports and Social Justice Symposium, to student-athletes who have gone above and beyond to help make a world that is “more fair and just”. Waddell, who graduated from Springfield College in ‘59, put aside a lot of time tackling issues within social justice, specifically with LGBTQ+ rights. For Rouleau, it was an honor to receive an award with his name on it.
“Receiving the Tom Waddell award meant a lot to me,” Rouleau said. “Such a prestigious award makes me truly honored and I am so glad I was considered for the opportunity. An honor in his name is incredible and I aim to continue to do what I can to make the world around me a more just place.”
Through this, Rouleau has been able to grow exceptionally close with Conlan Shaw, who was paired with the Pride through Team IMPACT, and has also become the main point of contact between the team and Conlan’s mom, Carina.
Throughout his life, Conlan had more than his fair share of adversity. He was diagnosed with a brain tumor when he was just 27 months old. While 98 percent of the tumor has been removed and has been in stable condition for a while, the tumor has still impacted Conlan’s life greatly. He went through multiple surgeries, two years of chemotherapy, and even suffered a stroke mid-surgery on top of being constantly in and out of the hospital.
He’s also been left blind in one eye due to the tumor being on the optic chiasm, which also took away his peripheral vision in his other eye. He also developed right side weakness and connecting with kids his own age has been virtually impossible.
“It’s been heartbreaking through everything,” Carina said. “Him growing up and not having any close friends and nobody he can really hang out with or do anything with, it’s very heartbreaking.”
However, even in times of adversity, Carina has been very impressed with his attitude in these challenging moments in life.
“He has pretty much gone through all of this with a big smile on his face,” Carina said. “He’s a very loving child who wants nothing more than to connect and have friends, and he was having a really hard time doing that with schoolmates of his age.”
Carina was aware about Team IMPACT long before she ended up enrolling Conlan, but due to their family only owning one car and Conlan not being allowed to drive, she didn’t sign Conlan up until he was 15.
After signing Conlan up, she later got a phone call from a Team IMPACT coordinator, with a potential team she thought would be a good fit for Conlan.
The coordinator told Carina that the men’s volleyball team at Springfield College had been trying to do something with Team IMPACT for a while, and asked Carina if they were onboard. While hesitant at first due to unfamiliarity of the school located in a city like Springfield and not knowing much about volleyball, she brought the idea to Conlan, who was thrilled.
While she didn’t know it at the time, this turned out to be the best decision she’s ever made for Conlan, and has greatly improved Conlan’s quality of life. As for Rouleau and the rest of the team, they have loved Conlan’s presence on the team. They have organized zoom meetings with him, while some of the local players had taken him out for ice cream a few times.
There’s no doubt that Conlan’s connection with Rouleau specifically has been beneficial for both of them, and Rouleau has also been able to grow close with Carina in the process.
“Conlan joining the team has been an amazing experience for not only me but for the whole entire team,” Rouleau said. “Conlan provides such a unique energy and can truly light up the room every time he walks in. Conlan and I have grown very close over these past three years and I would like to thank Team IMPACT for providing me the chance for that to happen.”
“Him and Chris have formed a fantastic bond,” Carina said. “I don’t even know how to put it into words what he means to both of us. It’s been fantastic, phenomenal and nothing that I could have even imagined.”