If you go to a Western volleyball game you’ll see a roster stacked with deep talent that works together beautifully. However, one 5’6” explosive hitter catches the eye of most spectators with her unfathomable elevation.

Watching Kelsey Grove jump is…confusing to say the least. Her uncanny jumping ability has led her to breaking the Western Albemarle record for kills in a match twice. “My coach came up to me a game or two before (the Albemarle game) and told me I was really close to breaking it,” Grove said humbly. She has since broken the record twice—once with 22 kills and again with 24. However, Grove’s personal stats were never of primary importance. “It wasn’t something I was focused on,” said the Senior, “I didn’t know I broke it until after the game.”

After dropping the first match against the Patriots at home, Grove and co. were hungry for a victory on enemy turf. “Our first goal was just to beat Albemarle, because we all hate Albemarle,” said Grove, a co-captain of the squad. The Warriors accomplished this in a 3-2 victory on the road against the Patriots which clinched the shared Jefferson District title.

Western didn’t stop there, as they defeated Turner Ashby 3-1 in the Conference 29 championship. After a 3-2 victory over Lord Botetourt in the Regional quarters, Western fell to Cave Spring. The 3-2 loss ended their season, and Grove’s illustrious career as a Warrior.

As an opponent, you better watch out when Grove is on the floor. The team has been able to string together countless scoring runs with her powerful kills. “The way she plays, we all just feed off of it,” said senior Colleen Forsman, another big contributor in Western’s incredible season. Voted the Conference 29 player of the year, Grove does not plan on continuing her career in college, but surely left her mark on the Western volleyball program.