The Pelaccio Sisters - Volleyball
 
Kristina '14
Undergraduate Major: English
 
Oneonta Athletic Bio: Played in 126 career matches recorded 145 service aces and 1,337 digs.
 
Brief bio to include current job w/responsibilities and length of time you have been in your current job
I am an Associate Account Executive for The Walt Disney Company.  I work in ad sales for the ESPN networks.  We sell the ads on the networks to a large list of clients.  I have been in this business for about 5 and half years; I spent 4 years at Fox Sports and now 1 and a half at ESPN.
 
Speak about the opportunity to compete at the collegiate level in Division III
Choosing to play volleyball at Oneonta was one of my best decisions I have made.  The friendships I have made with my teammates are the kind of friendships that will last forever.  I always looked forward to practices and especially Fridays and Saturdays when we had matches.
 
How did Oneonta prepare you for your post-graduate life?
Besides the education I got, having structure and discipline as a student athlete absolutely prepares you for post-grad life.
 
What advice would you give to current student athletes?
Enjoy every moment of it! This will be some of your best memories.
 
A memorable moment from your Oneonta experience as a student or as an athlete
One of my favorite moments was when I reached my 1000 dig milestone and seeing how proud my coach was and how happy my teammates were for me.  Also getting to play with my sister made my experience even more special.
 
How do you spend your spare time?
I like to run and workout.  I also like trying new restaurants with my sister Jessica in NYC (we live in an apartment together here).  We also like to travel (pre-covid) and have gone to Thailand and Bali together in the past year.
 
Jessica '17
Undergraduate Major: Communications with a Minor in Public Relations
 
Oneonta Athletic Bio: Played in 113 career matches recorded 110 service aces and 564 digs.
 
Brief bio to include current job w/responsibilities and length of time you have been in your current job:
I am currently a marketing assistant at City National Rochdale. CNR is an investment management firm in New York City. As a marketing assistant, my job is to host/coordinate advisor summits and broker dealer conferences all over the country to present to financial advisors and encourage them to partner with our firm. I also handle the data analytics for our digital marketing campaigns such as webinars and email marketing. I have worked in this position for about 2 years.
 
Speak about the opportunity to compete at the collegiate level in Division III:
Being able to compete as a collegiate DIII Athlete has been such a great experience. I have been able to have the sport/personal life balance I was looking for. Our conference was super competitive, and majority of SUNY schools preformed at a high level. As an athlete, we were introduced to other teams and created friendships outside our individual teams. We all became member of the Leadership academy which gave me the leadership skills you need to work in business.
 
How did Oneonta prepare you for your post-graduate life?
Oneonta prepared me for post grad life by teaching me how important time management is. During my years at Oneonta my planner helped me budget my time with my classes and athletics and I current use a similar planner to budget my work/life balance.
 
What advice would you give to current student athletes?
My advice for current student athletes is to not take any practice or game for granted. You are only given 4 years to play at the collegiate level and it goes by so quickly. Take a ton of pictures to help remember the good old days.
 
A memorable moment from your Oneonta experience as a student or as an athlete:
A memorable moment at Oneonta for me was the day my little sister decided to come to Oneonta with me. Being able to pay with both of my siblings was so special that many people do not get the opportunity to do.
 
How do you spend your spare time?
I typically spend my time hanging out with friends in Central Park on the weekends playing grass and beach volleyball when the weather is nice.
 
Lindsay '20
Undergraduate Major: Sociology with a minor in mathematics
 
Oneonta Athletic Bio: Played in 123 career matches recorded 101 service aces and 1,681 digs.
 
Brief bio to include current job w/responsibilities and length of time you have been in your current job:
I am 22 years old, and I recently graduated from SUNY Oneonta in May of 2020. Since graduating, I have been applying to jobs, mainly in the NYC area, as well as working at Row 13 Wines for the past two months.
 
Speak about the opportunity to compete at the collegiate level in Division III:
It was always a goal of mine to play division 3 volleyball in college. Division 3 gave me the opportunity to play my favorite sport, while gaining an excellent education simultaneously. D3 is the perfect balance of academics and athletics, with great competition. I loved having the busy days consisting of practice, lift, matches, film, and still being able to balance my schoolwork day to day. I think the best opportunity playing division 3 gave me was the close knit community of all student athletes and faculty. Everyone supports everyone and shows their excitement for your team's accomplishments.
 
How did Oneonta prepare you for your post-graduate life?
Oneonta prepared me for my post-grad life with a great education and learning opportunities. Being at Oneonta, I have learned how to be independent, but also how to work well with others. I think the curriculum was a huge part in preparing me for post grad. I have grown both intellectually and socially during my time at SUNY Oneonta.
 
What advice would you give to current student athletes?
I would tell student athletes to always give 150% when they are on the court, field, turf, or track. Being able to play a sport in college is a privilege, and you should be grateful for it every day-even when you are on your second 3-a-day in a row. I would also tell them to stay on top of their schoolwork, so that when you get that one day/night a week, you can relax and be with your friends. Always take advantage of your professors office hours-they make those to help you.
 
A memorable moment from your Oneonta experience as a student or as an athlete:
I will never forget being able to play volleyball with one of my older sisters, Jessie. She was a senior when I was a freshman at SUNY Oneonta and playing with her again since high school was the most fun part of my freshman year of college. It was an amazing experience getting to play alongside my sister. She helped me grow in so many ways and we not only treated each other as siblings, but as teammates, which I am so lucky to have experienced.
 
How do you spend your spare time?
Nowadays, I spend my spare time still playing volleyball on Tuesday and Thursday nights with my dad in a co-ed sand league. I have also been applying to jobs as well as working at a local wine store in my town.