Grace Jansen '25 Recruiting Profile

I am and have been very passionate about volleyball since my first game. In my very first indoor tournament at age 11, I was voted team MVP.  That same year, my partner and I won 1st place in the 12s division silver bracket at USAV Junior Beach Nationals in Manhattan Beach, CA, after playing beach volleyball for only 2 months and despite being some of the youngest players in the tournament. In 7th grade, my team was undefeated and won the conference tournament and I was awarded the "Triple Threat" award (aka MVP). For 5 years, I played on the top teams for a nationally ranked club (Sky High Volleyball) and qualified for USAV Nationals my 13s and 14s years. As a freshman, I started on my high school varsity volleyball team as a defensive player and a setter. I was the only freshman on varsity and led my team in assists and serve receive percentage. As a sophomore, I was a starting setter and a right-side hitter, was awarded All-Conference, helped lead my team to a Regional Championship, and led my team in assists and aces. This season, I was the starting setter, often played a 5-1, was awarded All-Conference, helped lead my team to a second Regional Championship and a Sectional semi-finals win, was the Northwest Herald Athlete of the Week for my performance at Regionals, was floor captain, and led my team in assists, digs, aces, serve percentage and dig accuracy percentage. Last club season, I left Sky High to play for Balance Volleyball Club because I also started playing beach volleyball year-round for Progression Beach Volleyball. At Balance, I set for the top 16s team and was team captain and also played on the top 18s team at various tournaments, including at AAU Nationals in Orlando, FL where the team placed 3rd out of over 120 teams. For Progression, my partner and I won the 2022 USAV Junior Beach National Championship in the 16U Division at Pompano Beach in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. I compete in indoor and beach tournaments across the country year-round.

The excitement,  competitiveness and thrill of the game gives me constant motivation to get better. Not only do I want to better myself, but I also want to make my teammates better by ALWAYS having a positive attitude and putting teamwork before anything else! I think more than anything, my passion and enthusiasm set me apart. I love to win, but it's the energy of the game that I love most! Before I played volleyball, I played basketball and soccer for about 3-4 years. I love the challenges sports bring and would love to continue playing volleyball in college.

I work just as hard off the court as I do on the court. I'm taking numerous AP classes and currently have an unweighted 4.0 GPA. I haven't decided on a major yet, but that's only because I'm interested in so many different things. I'm leaning toward something in the STEM field. The perfect fit for me would be a very strong academic school with a competitive volleyball team.