Student athletes from western North Carolina find a home in Charlotte after Helene
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UNC Asheville volleyball practices in Halton Arena on Charlotte's campus. Photo: Ashley Mahoney/Axios
Life since Hurricane Helene has been a "fever dream," UNC Asheville senior soccer player Michael Wilkerson said while sitting in the student union on UNC Charlotte's campus.
Why it matters: Charlotte, from the city at large to the university by the same name, is becoming a temporary home for sports teams from the mountains — a place where teams can be together and still have a season. But it's also about being a "light for Asheville," senior men's soccer player Michael Wilkerson says.
"Growing up in Asheville, we've always had that impression that we've kind of got this mountain wall around us that no natural disasters can kind of get through," Wilkerson said.
State of play: Helene devastated western North Carolina. Businesses shuttered and some are slowly reopening. Schools canceled classes temporarily but college athletes still have a season to look forward to.
- Many student athletes have relocated with their teams, including around 150 people from UNC Asheville, in Charlotte.
Between the lines: Home games are now road games, Asheville volleyball head coach Danielle Marante told me ahead of her team's practice at Charlotte's Halton Arena.
What they're saying: Marante is from Tampa, Florida and is more than familiar with hurricane season, but she never expected the destruction from one to stretch to the mountains.
- Eight matches into the season, they had to decide if they wanted to continue. She wanted to ensure her players were OK as people, not just as players on the court.
- "Every single one of our girls wanted to be here for each other — you really can't ask anything else [of them]," Marante said with tears in her eyes. "That's big. It says a lot about who they are as people."
Zoom out: Charlotte 49ers director of athletics Mike Hill tells us he reached out to fellow athletic directors at Asheville, Western Carolina and Appalachian State, offering to help in any way.
- The 49ers are providing housing and practice sites for men's and women's soccer and women's volleyball for players, coaches and team staff.
- Men's and women's basketball are practicing throughout Charlotte, including at the Charlotte Hornets practice space in Uptown.
- Student-athletes from Lees-McRae, a private school in Banner Elk, are also temporarily calling Charlotte home. Queens University of Charlotte is hosting men's and women's tennis, women's basketball and women's volleyball, a Queens University of Charlotte spokesperson confirmed.
What's next: Asheville's campus is closed until at least Oct. 21, per a university spokesperson. Classes, which resume Oct. 28, will be virtual for the rest of the semester.
- For Wilkerson, it's déjà vu — his college career started during the pandemic with virtual classes and now it's back classes on Zoom.
- Men's soccer plays at Winthrop on Oct. 12 at 7:30pm. Volleyball plays at Radford on Oct. 11 at 3pm.
Go deeper: How to support western N.C. communities devastated by Helene
- UNC Asheville has a disaster relief fund that you can donate to here.