SEEING DOUBLE: Crowley, Nihill Twins Power Owls' Volleyball Hopes
The odds of being born a twin is about 1 in 250. The odds of being a fraternal twin is about 1 in 50. The odds that a high school athlete becomes a college athlete is 1 in 13. The odds of going to the same school as your sister are 1 in 2.
The odds of being born a twin is about 1 in 250. The odds of being a fraternal twin is about 1 in 50. The odds that a high school athlete becomes a college athlete is 1 in 13. The odds of going to the same school as your sister are 1 in 2.
Add, multiply, and divide all those numbers, and you have something that resembles a million-to-one shot – to have two sets of twins on the same varsity collegiate team - which is the case right now for Westfield State volleyball.
Fifth-year senior fraternal twins Ashley Crowley and Shawna Crowley, and first-year identical twins Emma Nihill and Hanna Nihill represent the past, present and future for the Westfield State program.
The Crowleys, residents of Billerica, Mass., helped power Westfield State to the 2019 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Title,
Shawna's play in the 2019 tournament, with 18 kills in championship game 15 digs earned her tournament MVP honors and helped the Owls advance to the NCAA Division III Tournament by getting the MASCAC's automatic bid. She picked up first-team all-conference honors in 2021 and is the Owls' captain this season.
"Five years, it goes by fast," said Ashley when reflecting on their experiences at Westfield, which included a year without volleyball due to the pandemic.
"Getting MVP that year, sophomore year was probably my best year here," said Shawna.
"Every time they show that video of the 2019 MASCAC Championship on the jumbotron before the game, I get chills every time," said Ashley. "It was so exciting."
Shawna said she became interested in Westfield State first, and that about "five minutes after I committed, Ashley went to mom and told her that she wanted to commit to Westfield too. I really liked the program here for teaching, and a few of my mom's friends went here and had good things to say."
"Shawna couldn't pass at all when she got here, she could just hit," said Westfield State head coach Fred Glanville. "But now she's gotten really good at passing and is a six-rotation player, she can pass, serve. About halfway through her sophomore year (assistant coach) Paul (Afonso) said we should try to put her in the back row, and I had been seeing the same thing."
"It was hard at first with time management with school and volleyball," said Shawna. "But you get the hang of it, the upperclassmen and coaches were very helpful to us. Bri Starkey, Ally Rega, Hanna Simpkins, Karolyn Higgins – they were all our mentors."
Ashley's two-hand push attack for a kill was the match-winning point in the conference championship in 2019, and became a first-team all-conference pick in 2021.
"Personality wise, she may have been a little too high strung as a freshman and sophomore," said Glanville. "She was already a really good middle, and right side hitter. She's a good passer too, even though she doesn' t play in the back row much."
"Another coach in the league told me that their athletic director asked 'what happened when you played Westfield?'" said Glanville. "'The Crowley's happened, that's what happened'" the defeated foe reported.
"They are energetic, they're passionate about volleyball" added Glanville. "Even though they aren't identical twins you can tell they are very close as sisters. But they'll argue sometimes and I'll have to say 'that's enough!'"
"They don't understand sarcasm though," said Glanville. "They don't laugh at my jokes"
While Westfield, Mass. may seem an unusual destination for a duo from Chandler, Arizona, Emma and Hanna Nihill started looking for schools in the Northeast to be close to their brother Brenden, who plays baseball at Russell Sage College in Albany, just over an hour's drive from Westfield.
"They (Nihill's) play the same positions as the Crowley's, so that they are a little bit stuck behind another set of twins is a little bit ironic," said Glanville, "But I am glad they picked us."
"They are coming in really similar talent-wise to where the Crowley's were," said Glanville. "Only the Crowley's didn't have a pair in front of them at the time. Players from Arizona, some of the other states start playing volleyball a lot earlier than kids do here in Massachusetts. They have a lot of skills, and I am trying to find more time for them to play, and have been able to get them in a couple of times."
"They have been awesome this year," said Ashley of playing with the Nihills. "They are the first ones on the bench, they are always cheering, talking, ready to go in. When I accidently hit Shawna in the face the other day, she [Emma] came in and was ready."
The Nihills "have the best listening skills of any players I have had," said Glanville. "They look at you, they'll nod, they'll smile, they really pay attention. It almost throws me off sometimes because I'm not used to it."
How does that compare to the Crowleys? "It doesn't," cracked Glanville. "But they feel like family at this point."
Both sets of twins have their commonalities, but like to keep their own identities.
"We're definitely our individual people, but having different majors we're on a different schedule, so generally we are just seeing each other at our house or here at volleyball," said Shawna.
"We have our own characteristics playing as well," added Ashley "We've always played different positons – even in softball, basketball."
"We have the same major [Health Science], but different classes, we study separate from each other," said Emma.
"I like crime shows, she likes scary stuff," said Hanna.
"I have to force her to watch them with me, added Emma.
Hanna first found Westfield in her college search while looking for colleges in the northeast, and Emma decided to come along when Hanna scheduled a visit. Having another set of twins on the team wasn't even on their radar.
On the visit "We met Shawna but not Ashley. . . I was surprised to find out they were twins since they don't look alike. But it was kind of cool when we found out."
The first impressions of Westfield State have been good.
"It's feels bigger than I thought it was," said Hanna. "It's pretty too, there's a lot more trees than Arizona," added Emma, almost finishing her sister's sentence.
The Nihills agreed that the best part about being twins is "Whenever you go anywhere, or do something new, you never have to be by yourself," said Hanna. "On move in day everyone nervous about meeting your roommate, but whatever, I already knew my roommate," said Emma.
"The worst part is when you are always grouped together, or someone stares at us for like five minutes trying to tell us apart," said Emma.
Emma is thinking about a career in occupational therapy after college, while Hanna is interested in physical therapy with sports or a pediatric program.
The Crowleys are much closer to graduation, with Shawna currently completing her student-teaching while planning to teach third or fourth grade in the future. Ashley is interested in pursuing communications and social media for NASCAR or another sports organization.
Asked for advice for their younger counterparts, "Their time will come," said Shawna. "Keep pushing. Keep working hard."
"Never give up on themselves or the team," said Ashley. "In the long stretch if a game looks tough, or the coach or another player says something that's hard on you, just know everyone is there for you in the end, and you can do it."
Meanwhile, the quartet still has goals for this season and beyond.
"I'd like to win a MASCAC Title," said Hanna. "Four would be nice," chimed in Emma.
"Let's do it!" exclaimed Ashley, who was sitting in on the interview.
Seems like far less than a million-to-one chance.
- written by Dave Caspole, Associate A.D.