North Carolina State University Athletics
Kearney Thriving as a Freshman with Wolfpack Volleyball
10/7/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Freshman Kaitlyn Kearney's impact on the NC State women's volleyball team in the early fall season has caused a stir across the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
The prolific middle blocker, who swatted a career best 16 kills against Wake Forest and also notched a career high 12 blocks to record her first collegiate double-double in the contest, was the first player in the ACC on consecutive weeks to be named ACC Freshman or Player of the week.
"I was shocked," Kearney echoed when asked about her early season honors. "That's not something you see happen often, so I was very surprised to hear I earned the award on consecutive weeks."
Leading a Wolfpack squad, which collected 12 consecutive triumphs and finished the month of September with a perfect 10-0 record, Kearney was praised by head coach Bryan Bunn for her poise and grit in the midst of some tough matches.
Born in Tampa, Fla., Kearney lived in Orlando until she was eight years of age when her father (Kris) took a job in Frisco, Texas, working in the insurance business. She followed her father's athletic prowess in the wake of his career as a college basketball player at Florida Southern and pro player in England as a member of the Manchester Giants.
She and her twin sister Aylcia are really close and had never spent more than a week apart, prior to Kaitlyn leaving for NC State.
"I originally wanted to stay in Texas to be close to my sister and my family," Kearney said. "My sister's going to community college back home, so I wanted to stay there but then NC State started recruiting me."
According to Kearney, NC State's recruitment was different than other schools. "I got really excited (when talking to the coaches) and they made me feel wanted. I knew after a second visit in my sophomore year in high school that NC State was the perfect fit for me."
She also mentioned her brother, Kris, Jr., who graduated from Texas A&M and is now in law school at Southern Methodist.
Kearney liked to play both basketball and volleyball, but in high school decided that volleyball was the sport she loved the most. Focusing on volleyball proved to be the right decision for her as she was a first team all-district selection three years in a row and was also a two-time recipient of the district blocker of the year award.
At Frisco High, the 6-foot-2 Kearney earned all sorts of accolades on the volleyball court, including all-state honors. Off the court, she was just as impressive - a four-time district all-academic recipient and a member of the National Honor Society.
Her prep success has not taken long to translate to the collegiate level. Kearney started the season opener against Eastern Washington and led the team with 13 kills in the match. Through the first 15 matches of the season, Kearney has made 14 starts and leads the Wolfpack with 2.73 kills per set and 1.12 blocks per set.
"I got here in June and really thought I would get super home sick," Kearney recalled. "But I adapted well and everyone was really friendly. I didn't have any time to think about how far I was from home. The campus is awesome."
Kearney takes pride in the continuing change of the NC State athletics culture, including women's volleyball.
"Coach Bunn has been here five years and is still in the process of a culture change. He started it and is still working on it. And the coaches are good at helping to fix certain things, including getting us to focus."
As the Wolfpack (12-3, 1-2 ACC) volleyball squad gets into the meat of the ACC schedule, Kearney hopes to continue producing, offensively and defensively, en route to a productive season.
Written By George Cox, GoPack.com columnist
