Watching her sister play in tournaments was always a joy to Karis Carter, a sophomore. She often practiced volleyball with her sister while growing up, and this inspired her to pursue the sport in high school. After playing with her sister she would often think that she should play in high school like her sister, and this inspiration and determination gave her an advantage when she started as a varsity player her freshman year.

Carter started playing with her sister the summer of 6th grade and has continued to do so throughout the years.

“I started to play in the summer in 6th grade and continued to play in 7th grade and 8th grade, and I’m pretty sure that’s how I got onto varsity.”

Like her sister, she decided to play for Stagg’s volleyball team, with fellow players and coaches encouraging her.

“They would say ‘try out, try out’ and I was like ‘what do I have to lose?’”

Carter also plays volleyball outside of school, not only playing with her sister, but playing for a club last year as well from November to April. She plans to play for a club again this year because doing so enabled her to improve a lot on her hits.

“I used to do like a little slap for a hard spike… now I can really hit it” said Carter.

With hard work and her sister to motivate and practice with her throughout the years, Carter has been able to develop a passion for volleyball that encourages her to put her heart into every game.