Personal Statement
Hi, my name is Ali Vaughn. I am currently attending Mt. Zion High School in Mt. Zion Illinois. I will be graduating in 2019 and would love to fill a setter position. I live with my parents, Angie and Dennis, and my little sister Mia. I have an older sister, Megan, who is currently attending Samford University. My older sister was the one person who inspired me to play and excel in volleyball.
I started playing volleyball when I was about 5 or 6. I also tried to play other sports such as tennis, golf, soccer, and track. These other sports did not stand out to me as much as volleyball did. I think volleyball stood out to me because one; my sister played and I wanted to follow in her footsteps, two; volleyball is the most challenging and dynamic sport I have played, and three; I like working as a teammate instead of being alone. I love my position as setter. It allows me to be a leader and challenges me to push and encourage myself and others on my team. My coaches and team mates have chosen me to be a captain on both club and high school teams because of my leadership capabilities. Furthermore, I truly understand that it is my responsibility, as a setter, to foster the team's development both on and off the court. Due to my love for this sport, I always give 110% in practice and during games.
I have made many volleyball achievements over my Jr. High and High School years. In Jr. High, my team and I(captain) went to state both 7th(1st) and 8th(3rd) grade. During my club season in 8th grade, my team and I (captain) got 3rd in the AAU Nationals tournament in Orlando. So far in High School (varsity since freshman year) my team and I won two Regional titles and threeConference championships. I am currently playing club at Illini Elite on 17 Black. I have also attended Sports Performance (SPVBC) setting camps (x 1 week each and for varsity setters) in 2015 and 2016 at Benedictine College with Rick Butler as camp director and head coach.
Since starting volleyball, I think I have done well to balance both my academic and volleyball activities. I play volleyball all year round and right now attend practice three days a week at Illini Elite which is an hour away. I am currently in Chemistry, Pre-calc, and Spanish 3, which are the top classes of my grade. I currently have a 3.8/4 GPA. My parents have taught me that you have to work hard to achieve what you want and value the talent that has come through years of practice and studying. I am constantly pushing myself to do better and succeed in whatever challenge comes my way.
My dream one day is to go into the medical field. In order to accomplish this, I know that it will take a lot of hard work and dedication on my part to keep a balance between my grades and volleyball. So far, I have done well at doing this.
Lastly, I am a skilled and smart setter, who can impact your program in a positive way. I love being coached and shown new skill sets in order to be more competitive. One of my strengths is ball placement. I can accurately set the ball from most anywhere on the court. I also excel at defense and go to all lengths to not let a ball drop! By 2019, I will have played 7 years of club volleyball, 4 years of varsity level competition, attended 6 AAU nationals and various regional tournaments, and participated in 3 -1 week setting camps.
I am mostly looking for schools throughout the Midwest to the South.
