Sports

Wildman Transitions to Outside Hitter with MVP Success

Concorde District coaches name Oakton senior MVP of the district

If it hadn't been for a neighbor, Kelsey Wildman may never have played volleyball.

When Wildman was 7 years old, Mikayla Turner — now a sophomore and teammate — moved into the neighborhood. Turner's mother played volleyball, so their family had all the equipment that allowed Wildman and Turner to play in the cul-de-sac just for fun. In third grade, Wildman signed up to play volleyball with the Chantilly Youth Association.

Nine years later, Concorde District coaches have named Wildman, a senior at Oakton High, MVP of the district — a title she didn't see coming at the start of the season.

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Ever since her days in youth volleyball, Wildman had played middle blocker. Always tall — and now 6-feet-tall — Wildman could be relied upon to protect the net.

This season, Coach Steve Drumm had different plans for her. She played outside hitter for the first time in her long volleyball career.

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"I had the lowest confidence level in the beginning. I didn't want to do it at all," Wildman said. "I would come home crying to my dad about how awful it was and how my shoulder hurt because I didn't have the right swing."

But Drumm had confidence in Wildman's abilities even if she didn't have it in herself. And it paid off. She leads the team in kills (240) with a dominance that has helped her team to its most successful season in recent years, seeded No. 1 in the Concorde District tournament. The squad will play in the district final at 6:30 p.m. today against Chantilly, hosted by Centreville High School.

"I'm glad Drumm moved me to that position because it has obviously paid off," Wildman said.

For Drumm, it was an easy decision. The best hitter should go on the outside. For this team, that's Wildman.

"She came into this season the favorite for Player of the Year, All-Region, every accolade you can think of if she stayed in that position," Drumm said. "But I wanted her passing and defending, too. I had seen her do it in practice. I knew she could do it."

Drumm also felt confident in making the switch because of Wildman's work ethic and leadership: She's a dedicated, intense player who, as one of the team captains, doesn't want to let her team down.

She made varsity her freshman year, and has set several team records, including most kills in a match (29), most kills in a season (258) and most kills in a career (650 as of Oct. 27). Last year, she was named first team All-Concorde District and honorable mention in the Northern Region.

Wildman has put all her athletic abilities into volleyball, playing no other sport. She said she loves the sport for many reasons, but mostly because she had a natural talent for it that she enjoyed finessing.

"Plus it doesn't have all that much running," she laughed.

She said she didn't realize the extent of her talent until she played on the 15-under select team, where she was coached by Pat Smith and Scott Smith. Along with the coaching from Drumm on the Oakton High varsity team, she said she started to get serious about the sport because of how much she was learning.

But not so serious that she's looking for a Division 1 school to take her on next year, something Drumm said Wildman has the talent to do if she wanted. She doesn't want to commit her college life to a sport, and because she wants to attend a large university — James Madison University to study nursing, to be exact — she'd rather play at the club or intramural level.

"I'll definitely keep playing because I do love it, but just not at the highest level," Wildman said.

For right now, Wildman is focused on tonight's Concorde District Championship — a game she never thought Oakton would see when she made the squad four years ago.

"If you asked me if I thought we'd be in the district finals my senior year, I would never have predicted that," Wildman said.

But under the direction of Drumm, who has been head coach for the last four years and this year received Coach of the Year for the Concorde District, the team has crept back into contention.

Wildman thinks the Cougars' secret is communication.

"We just have really good chemistry. We can say whatever we want to each other, and it may be mean, I guess, but it's really just constructive criticism," she said. "Other teams I've been on couldn't handle that. This team can."


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