Rutgers-Newark Athletics

By Jim Hague

Parth Vedawala was faced with a tough decision last summer.

Should he leave his Rutgers-Newark volleyball teammates for a semester and study abroad in Rome? Or should he remain at home and play volleyball?

“After a while, it became very easy to make the decision,” Vedawala said. “It was a chance of a lifetime. I got to take some business courses and an art history class where we got to walk around Rome and look at all the ancient places. I had never been to Europe and I was able to take classes right in the heart of Rome. It was absolutely amazing and the greatest experience I ever had.”

However, when Vedawala returned from Rome right before Christmas, he had to work very hard to retain his standing with the Scarlet Raiders’ volleyball program.

“I spoke with Coach (Karl) France and told him about my decision to go to Rome,” Vedawala said. “He told me I would have my spot waiting for me when I got back. That meant a lot to me.”

Vedawala had worked hard to earn that position on the Scarlet Raiders’ roster. He was not a scholarship athlete out of J.P. Stevens High School in Edison, but worked his way onto the team as a walk-on.

“He was not looked on as a big contributor at first,” France said. “He was just one of the group.”

But Vedawala’s determination earned him the Coaches Award for his unselfishness and dedication to the program as a freshman. As a sophomore, Vedawala saw a little more action, getting onto the court for six matches.

However, when Vedawala made the decision to head to Italy for a semester, France thought that would seal his fate as an R-N volleyball player.

“He said he was definitely going to come back, but I didn’t expect that he would,” France said. “It’s very rare for an athlete to go abroad like that and then try to come back and play. Just the adjustment of getting conditioned to play again. It wasn’t that he was so badly out of shape. But just that he was out of volleyball for a while. He was away for six months and the other members of the team had all the off-season conditioning and work. I thought it would take him a little longer to come back.”

Vedawala said that getting into a volleyball mindset was perhaps the toughest transition.

“While I was in Rome, I didn’t do anything volleyball related,”
Vedawala said. “I was eating a lot of Italian food. When I came back (in December), I had to put in a lot of work to catch up with my teammates who had been working all that time. The first day I went to two practice sessions and I hurt all over. It took a couple of weeks to get back into the swing of things.”

The 6-4 junior middle hitter knew that his role with the Scarlet Raiders this season would be limited.

“I pretty much knew I was going to be a bench player, but I also expected to get more playing time this year,” Vedawala said. “But I understood. I talked with Coach France and told him that I felt I had caught up and wanted to compete for a starting spot.”

“They all want to play right away,” France said. “Parth said he was ready. So I put his feet to the fire and he did it. He always wants to give his best all the time. He understood his role and he was going to get his chance to play.”

The Scarlet Raiders’ roster is depleted this season.

“We’re 10 men in,” France explained. “And all 10 play. Parth has really stepped up when we needed him to. He’s been a solid contributor and he does his job well. You need to have guys like that on a team, the selfless guy who is willing to do anything. Parth does that time and time again for us.”

Recently, Vedawala had to step in and play considerable time against Princeton with Brett Pickens out with an injury. Vedawala helped to lead the Scarlet Raiders to a crucial victory.

“He did good job, got some key blocks and helped us win the match,” France said. “He’s really done a solid job. He’s an energy guy for us and a very good teammate.”

“I understand I’m mostly a reserve and have to keep guys going in practice,” Vedawala said. “It’s important, especially with a small team this year. When my time comes, I have to be ready and I’m confident I can deliver.”

Vedawala was born in the United States, but his parents were born in India. He recently found out that his father was a recreational volleyball player in his native land when he was younger, so volleyball was in the family genes.

Vedawala is a double major at Rutgers-Newark, majoring in finance and management. He hopes to get involved with investment banking when he graduates from R-N next year, perhaps working on Wall Street.

For now, he’s back from Rome and making a positive impact.

“It’s about what I expected,” Vedawala said. “We’re doing well and playing our hearts out, getting ready for the playoffs. We’re finding a rhythm now. I feel like I’m playing better now.”

And it appears as if Vedawala experienced the best of both worlds, in Rome and in Newark.