Alabama Volleyball Newcomer Q&A: Kaylee Thomas
8/22/2017 5:08:00 PM | Volleyball
Alabama Volleyball welcomes eight newcomers to the 2017 team and all eight will have Q&A features posted on RollTide.com heading into the season. The seventh featured newcomer is freshman Kaylee Thomas from Ocala, Fla.
How did you get your start playing volleyball?
"All my sisters and my mom played volleyball and my dad coached me and my sisters so it was in the family already. I had been playing other sports like basketball and softball and my sisters played those as well in high school but I was the only one to focus in on just volleyball. It was when I started playing club volleyball, so I was either 10 or 11. That was during basketball and softball season so I had to make a decision whether I wanted to stay with all three or just focus on volleyball. There were parts of basketball and softball I liked but volleyball was the only one I enjoyed everything about so I wanted to spend all my time with it."
When did you start to think you could play volleyball at the college level?
"When I started my first club season, they only had an 18U and 16U team so I played with the 16U group. When I realized I could still compete with girls significantly older than me and that I still had a lot of time to develop and get better. It was a goal in front of me to push toward."
When did the recruiting process start for you?
"The first schools you see in the volleyball world are the ones who are winning everything, so it was places like Penn State and Stanford. I was just looking at volleyball back then but as I got older and started to look at the actual school, what degree I wanted and what kind of environment I wanted to be a part of, that's when I started looking at different schools.
When did Alabama come into the picture?
"Alabama was at the top of my list from the start. I liked the tradition here, they have a good business program and I liked the environment here when I came on my first visit. The athletics programs are all top-notch. Obviously football is the first one everyone sees but they do a good job of keeping everyone competitive and treating us all really well.
"I emailed the coaches at first, that's how it all got started. I was looking at some other schools in the area but Alabama was the only one I emailed directly. That was probably December of my junior year right before my club season started. We had a tournament in Atlanta a few months later and they sent someone to watch me without telling me ahead of time. A week after that they called my club director and that's where it all started."
What were your first impressions when you came to visit?
"I had only gone to one other college before Alabama, and you could tell there that if they had something on campus that wasn't as good as the others, they would downplay it and hide it. Here, they would point at everything around campus and could talk about it all for 10 minutes. It would be the most random stuff I wouldn't be involved in and they would still talk about it. It was impressive how everything was so top-notch and put together well. They didn't have to hide anything. I could ask questions and not worry about the answers I would get."
Did you know right away that you wanted to come to Alabama or did the decision take some time?
"Maybe 15 minutes into my visit I felt like this was the place. I didn't want to make the decision right away though. I made sure to ask plenty of questions and get all the information I needed. My mom and dad were with me too and they were amazed by everything just as much as I was. I told them at the end of the visit I wanted to come here and they said they already knew I would say that. I committed at the end of my visit right before a team practice. Coach [Ed] Allen was excited and my parents were very at-ease with my decision. They felt comfortable putting me here and didn't have any stress with how I would be treated here."
How has the transition been coming to Alabama now that you've been here for over half a year?
"I think I've adjusted well. Any doubt I might have had was erased immediately in the first week of practice. I love it here and getting to play at this level is incredible. The way that we run drills and the intensity make even the most boring drills so much fun. I don't have any regrets, I couldn't have made a better decision to come here."
How had the adjustment been off the court?
"I'm missing having my family close, that's been the hardest part. But as far as being on my own I'm doing fine. I lived with some girls on the team over the summer and we're all getting along great and taking care of each other."
Looking ahead to the fall, what are some of your goals for the fall?
"I want to bring as much energy as I can to the team. I want to make a difference and help everyone get better."
What advice would you give to a high school player who wants to play in college?
"I wish I would have started looking a little earlier. The thing that helped me was looking at all aspects of the college and not just the volleyball program. At the end of the day, you only play volleyball for four years but the school sets you up for life after volleyball."
