Athlete Profile: Kaitlyn Clark

Senior helping Witt-Birn reach lofty goals

WITTENBERG — The Wittenberg-Birnamwood High School volleyball team entered the season with high expectations, and the team has turned in a strong fall with the help of senior Kaitlyn Clark.

Clark has been a force at the net all season for the Chargers, with her biggest impact coming as a blocker.

The senior helped Witt-Birn to a big conference road win on Thursday, tallying 10 block kills against Amherst.

“Kaitlyn is a great middle hitter. She has been a great blocker every since she made the varsity team her junior year, but the huge step she took this year is her ability to run quick sets out of the middle,” said Witt-Birn coach Becky Rew.

“Several opposing coaches have given her compliments about how quick she is and how she affects their defense. I also have to mention Kaitlyn personality as a difference maker on our team. She is the player that makes everyone laugh with her goofy comments and looks. You can always count on her to keep it light and fun at practice.”

Q: When did your interest in volleyball begin?

A: My interest in volleyball came in when I was in eighth grade and when all my friends where joining and I just wanted to give it a try to see if I liked it.

Q: What is your favorite part about the volleyball season?

A: My favorite part about the volleyball season would be all the big tournaments we go to before all the conference games start because it gives us a chance to really practice my technique and we come together as a team and get used to playing with each other. We also do some team bonding activities and those can be really fun.

Q: Your team is loaded with experienced upperclassmen, setting high expectations which the team is now chasing. Talk about what it’s like having such high expectations going into the season and knowing you’re going to get every opponent’s best shots?

A: Having really high expectations makes us want to work even harder to prove that we have what it takes and that we are a great team.

Q: Talk about some of the team’s goals it hopes to achieve by the end of the year and then what it’s going to take to reach those?

A: One goal that we want to reach is being conference champs and than after that be regional champs. To make those goals happen, we really just have to give it all that we got in practice and work really hard on our passing and hitting so we can be consistent in a game.

Q: How did you prepare for the volleyball season?

A: I prepared by going to volleyball camps that our coach offered and all the open gyms and practices we had I went to so that my senior season would be amazing.

Q: What’s your favorite memory of competing on the Wittenberg-Birnamwood volleyball team?

A: One of my favorite memories would have to be senior night because standing there listening to one of my good friends (Khloie Cherek) saying how I impacted the team and how capable I was made me realize how this journey has been amazing — meeting new people, playing with different people made me a better player. It all made me realize how fast this all went and I loved every minute of it.

Q: What are you going to miss most about high school volleyball?

A: I am going to miss the bond that I have with the volleyball team and how close we were because we are not just a team we are a family. Knowing how everyone on the team was very supportive and how I could go to anyone for anything will make me miss everyone very much.

Q: What is your favorite thing to do when you are not in school or competing in a high school sport?

A: When I am not playing volleyball I like to show beef cattle. I have been showing beef cattle for nine years and it is just a huge part of my life.

Q: What’s your favorite TV show?

A: My favorite TV show has to be “One Tree Hill.”

Q: Name one thing about yourself that not many people know.

A: Not a lot of people know that I like to paint pictures.

Q: What is the greatest piece of advice you have ever been told?

A: That I will be used as an example for many years to come. My coach told me this on senior night and it really made me feel like a role model to others and how some younger volleyball players look up to me. It means a lot to me because she could see how hard I worked these past few years.

Q: What are some things you hope to accomplish after graduating high school?

A: I hope to go to UW-Eau Claire or UW-Green Bay and major in psychology, and after college, my dream job is to be a child life specialist.

AT A GLANCE

Athlete: Kaitlyn Clark

Sport: Volleyball

Positions: Middle hitter

School: Wittenberg-Birnamwood High School

Year: Senior