Personal Narrative: My Love With The Volleyball Team

The first time I played volleyball I was eleven. I instantly fell in love with the sport, so I aspired to join my middle school team. I was a sixth grader in a crowd of almost 60 older girls with more experience in the sport; however, I did not let that hold me back. I gave my all but that turned out not to be enough. I was very disappointed but instead of letting this experience discourage me, it lit a fire underneath me to return the next year and try harder. Over the summer I did many volleyball camps to improve my skills for the upcoming season. At the next tryout, I performed better and more confident but it still did not pay off. I was heartbroken but I still felt like volleyball was where I belonged. I was not going to let the last two

I knew I was supposed to be on the team but I was worried that my last possibility to be on the roster would end up with the same result, failure. I could let that pressure tear me down but instead, I let it motivate me. During tryouts, I pushed myself to my limits to show the coaches that I could be an asset to their team and could also help be a leader on the court. I finally made the team. Now that my first goal was accomplished, I was determined to become a starter. I sat on the bench at the beginning of the season and that encouraged me to practice harder. By the middle of our season, I had advanced myself to a starter position and could not have been happier. After trying for three years to earn my spot, I was not only on the team, but was helping lead it. As that season came to a close, I had my eyes set on joining the high school team. During the rest of the school year, I talked to the high school coach and he let me participate in the high school volleyball off season practices. In addition to those practices, I went to NC States summer volleyball camp to improve my skills. While there, I not only fell further in love with the sport but I fell in love with the campus and atmosphere at NC