Jackson County Blue Devils Volleyball Player Kenley Letterman has swung at volleyballs since elementary school, and her passion for the sport has only grown with time.
Letterman said she first picked up basketball before her love for volleyball began. What started as bumping, setting, and spiking with friends during lunch or after school hours quickly turned into a commitment.
“Whenever you’re younger, you’re like oh, let’s try out different sports,” Letterman said. “Basketball I had been playing for a really long time, so I was like, oh let’s try something different and volleyball happened to be it.”
Today, Letterman plays volleyball and basketball for the Lady Jets. Letterman said while she remains busy throughout the school year, she sees the benefits to playing both sports.
“Volleyball kind of helps me get ready for basketball in the sense of conditioning,” Letterman said. “In volleyball during the summer, we condition a lot to get ready for the season so the transition from volleyball to basketball makes it a little bit easier just because you’ve been working and playing hard throughout the season.”
Letterman knows the physical demands that come with each sport. Volleyball relies on short distance running, while basketball requires constant sprinting up and down the floor.
“Basketball, you definitely go ten times harder cause you’re wanting to go from one side of the court to the other,” Letterman said. “It’s also a lot farther of a distance.”
Letterman plays on the right side and outside for the Lady Jets volleyball team. After her volleyball and basketball seasons are up, Letterman said she hopes to step away from playing sports for a while. Letterman said she hopes to go to college as a kinesiologist.