Beyond the Game – KWT

Note: The following appears in the August issue of Orange: The Experience. For full access to all of the publication’s content, join IPTAY today by calling 864-656-2115.

Q. Where do you call home and what school did you graduate from?A. I’m from Orlando, Fla., and I graduated from The First Academy, which is a small private school that I attended from kindergarten through 12th grade. I had a really great experience there.

Q. Do you have any siblings?A. I have a sister, Jordan, who is two years older than me. Jordan recently graduated from the University of South Carolina, where she played indoor volleyball for two years and sand volleyball for the other two. Jordan now lives in California and is working as a nanny. She coached sand volleyball for a while and is currently taking online classes as she works toward a master’s degree in sports nutrition.

Q. What are you studying at Clemson?A. I’m majoring in communications and minoring in business administration.

Q. What is your favorite class that you have taken at Clemson?A. All of the communications classes that I’ve taken at Clemson have been awesome. The communications professors are so great. Principles of Public Relations with Dr. Andrew Pyle has been my favorite course.

Q. How did you first become involved with volleyball?A. I knew when I was 10 years old, watching my sister play, that I wanted to play as soon as possible. And when I was 11, I started playing on a club team. Of course, I had played volleyball at school prior to that, but playing on a club team for the first time was a big deal.

Q. Who has inspired you the most throughout the course of your volleyball career?A. As it relates to volleyball, my sister has definitely inspired me the most. I played several other sports as a child, but when Jordan got involved with volleyball, I knew that playing volleyball was what I wanted to do, too. We play the same position, and I like to joke that I’m better than her now. Jordan taught me everything I knew when I was starting out, and I’ve always looked up to her.

Q. How has volleyball influenced your life?A. Volleyball has given me several opportunities that I wouldn’t have had otherwise, and it has taught me many valuable life lessons on how to work with people. Volleyball has also taught me discipline and time management. All in all, I love being a part of something that’s bigger than myself, and volleyball provides me with the opportunity to commit to a team and do something that I couldn’t do on my own.

Q. What is your favorite part about being a Clemson athlete?A. I really enjoy getting to be inside the network of student-athletes. It’s like a sorority or a fraternity, but you get to train and condition with the other members and hang out with them afterward, too. To me, it’s the greatest system that a college student could be a part of.

Q. What are your hobbies?A. I’ve gotten into playing quite a bit of other sports lately. I’ve been playing golf, even though I’m awful at it. Honestly, doing things that I’m super bad at is super fun. For example, I used to be terrible at bowling, but I’ve always found it to be really fun. And I’ve gotten a little better at it over time. Basically, I always try to stay active and look for things to do outside.

Q. What do you love most about the Clemson area?A. I love how gorgeous it is. Also, I’m from Orlando, where there’s a ton of traffic and tourists, so it’s nice to live in this small, quiet Southern town where everyone’s polite.

Q. What are your aspirations for life after college?A. At some point, I definitely want to go into the mission field. I’ve always felt the call to do that. As far as a career, I’m not yet sure what exactly I’m going to get into, but I’m definitely planning to pursue a career that ties in with communications. Whatever I do, I plan to do something that I love and that I’m passionate about. Hopefully, a lot of what I do in life will be for other people because I want to always be invested in other people’s lives.