The volleyball pipeline from Shady Spring High School to Concord University is flowing like a rushing river.
Monday afternoon another Tiger standout joined the southern flow to Athens.
Surrounded by family, teammates, coaches and friends, Haley Sweeney jumped aboard the Tiger parade by signing a National Letter of Intent to play next fall for the Mountain Lions.
Sweeney joins former teammates Meg Williams and Chloe Thompson who played this year as freshman at Concord, along with fellow-senior Camille Testerman who signed with the Mountain Lions just over a week ago.
“It is really special and I am proud of myself. This is a sport that I love and I am so happy that I am getting to go play at the next level,” Sweeney said. “Playing with a lot of really good players, sometimes it is hard to get noticed. Chloe and Meg are already starting at Concord. I have tried my best and worked hard to get to this point.”
Sweeney excelled a bit outside the volleyball limelight by leading the Tigers this year in assists with 713, as well as aces with 116 winners.
“Haley is definitely a player that we are going to miss. She is the one going around high-fiving and making everyone feel included on the floor,” Shady Spring head coach Brantlea Wood said. “Plus, we will miss her setting. She does the grunt work for setting. We will also miss her all-around with everything she brings to the floor.”
The most recent Mountain Lion commit credited her time in the Shady Spring program as a key factor for reaching her next level dream.
“I have had great coaches, (former head coach) Kelly (Williams) and (assistant coach) Sharon (Pinardo) taught me so much my first two years,” Sweeney said. “Brantlea continued to teach me stuff. I never felt like I was done learning. I think that helped a lot because I just kept improving. That is what you need to do to get where you need to be.”
After Thompson and Williams made an instant impact in their first collegiate season, Wood believes Sweeney and Testerman can follow suit.
“I think that Haley and Camille have been phenomenal players and phenomenal leaders,” Wood said. “Behind the scenes is what people don’t get to see all of the time. Their work ethic has been outstanding. There have been multiple practices where they have asked to stay late and work on things.”
“You know with that mentality they are just going to keep getting better,” Wood went on to say. “I think they will be able to make an impact when they get there. Concord is a very young team. I feel they will do well wherever they play on the floor.”
Just like Testerman, Concord seemed like the obvious choice for Sweeney for multiple reasons.
“It is close to home which was appealing. I played “Y Not Volleyball” (at Concord University), so it just feels homey to me and I am familiar with it,” Sweeney said. “I know the coach and it was a place that I was really comfortable.”
Reuniting with their former teammates also played a part in the decision process for Sweeney.
“Us four were always such good friends and we would hang out outside of volleyball all the time,” Sweeney said. “I am really excited. We have been talking and we are so excited about getting back together and getting to play together again.”
Although she was accomplished player in high school, the future Mountain Lion knows it is called the next level for a reason.
However, Sweeney also made it clear she was ready for the challenge ahead.
“I definitely think my defense will need to improve. They will be hitting a lot harder. They also hit around the block and I depend a lot on the block,” Sweeney explained. “Even setting it is a quicker speed. To get used to the speed of the game, I will have to continue build my skills up so I can defend properly.”
