Mary Katherine Ashburn '21 Recruiting Profile

Commitment. Discipline. Determination. These traits are highly admired by most, but do not develop overnight. It takes life experiences, things that become apart of you, to influence you to be who you are and or who you strive to be.  Commitment, discipline, and determination are not only apart of who I am, but major characteristics of who I want be. Being the youngest in the family of 4 children has always been a struggle for me. My sibling were so much older than me, and age gap of 8 to 13 years in my case, I often felt left out. However, the age difference also pushed me mature a little fast so I could do things everyone else in the family enjoyed. Since most of my family all played soccer, I knew I needed to find a sport of my own.Everything about volleyball challenges me to “the best”. The sport doesn’t have room for a “second best” or “okay”. It is intense; it allows me to channel my competitiveness, requires a strong level of commitment, discipline, and determination to grow and improve, both on and off the court. Volleyball has been apart of my life since the 4th grade and I'm glad I choose it.  When people ask why I stuck with volleyball for so long, I often smile and say, "I love volleyball. Always have, always will. It has changed me into who I am today; I never want to change that."

When first starting out I was like everyone else just starting to play the game, but I never thought that it would impact my life the way it has. Being on a team feels like having a bigger family to enjoy and compete with. My team has shown me that as long as we have a common goal and work together, we can accomplish anything with hard work and practice. Working with my team showing leadership, companionship, and never quitting. School also has helped me to become as driven as I am on and off the court. Academically, my goal for high school is to stay balanced with both my athletic and social life. For school has always been important to me volleyball will always be there. Volleyball has taught me several things about myself, specially working for what you want, don’t take anything for granted, and just having fun with what I love to do.  These lessons are invaluable. Not only are they essential to playing a good game, the lessons carry over into my academic performance and social life.While people tell me that I’m a good player, I know that I can be even better than what I am now.