Northside has one senior starter on this season’s volleyball squad. For sure, Caroline McKinney understands with that distinction, she has to do a bit of extra lifting when it comes to having the underclassmen starters be on the same wavelength.
But McKinney has another unique distinction: Last season, she was the only junior starter for the Lady Bears[1].
“As the only senior starter, I’ve been able to take these (extra) responsibilities,” said McKinney, a three-year starter at right side outside hitter. “As a sophomore, I had lots of seniors around me and then last year, I was the only junior starter. And so over the last two years, I’ve watched and learned from my past seniors on how I can help everyone on the court get to their fullest potential while playing with them. It’s hard when we’re really young, but I’ve been able to connect with the girls on and off the court to really get us to play to our full potential.”
McKinney, who goes 6-foot, said while it has been a bit trying at times being the Lady Bears’ lone senior starter, she feels she has been up to the challenge. And for McKinney being able to get her teammates up to speed includes organizing activities away from the volleyball court.
“Every day after school, we go to practice, and I just check in on them, see how their classes are doing, and see how their day has gone,” she said. “Friday nights, we have football games, and I make sure I’m with them at those so we’re with each other outside of practice. I try to make sure we have a good bond, that they can come to me if they need anything, and so forth.”
As a hitter up front, McKinney knows it’s also important to be able to slam the ball down into the other side of the net for kills. She has recorded 132 kills in matches through late September so far, and had 219 as a junior. When asked how hard she can deliver kills, McKinney didn’t hesitate with her answer.
“Pretty forceful, and I’ve been working on that,” she said. “That is something that I’ve definitely progressed in, starting from sophomore year up. I work every summer on that, work in the off-seasons on that, and it’s going a lot better.”
McKinney said she also puts emphasis on her blocking abilities. She had at least 50 blocks her sophomore and junior years, and has 23 so far this season. Although she primarily plays outside hitter, McKinney has also learned to adapt to taking a few extra roles and become even more of a utility player.
“In the last few weeks, we’ve had some injuries, and I’ve been able to overcome that by stepping into a new position,” she said. “So recently, I’ve been playing middle, outside, in the back row. I’ve been able to help the team by not just being a one-dimensional player, being able to play any position I’ve thrown into.”
McKinney will get to play at the next level, having committed to play for Loyola University in New Orleans, La.
“The school is a Catholic Jesuit school, and I myself am Catholic, and I really appreciate the community and culture of giving back to the community,” said McKinney, who has a 4.08 grade-point average and plans to major in management and minor in marketing. “The volleyball program is great. … It’s really just a good community of girls. They’re really close, and they really care about each other, and they work really well as a team. I really enjoyed that.”
Related
References
- ^ Lady Bears (www.thenorthsidegrizzlies.com)