VYPE Klein August 2022

Klein High volleyball

\\ By Ma t t Ma l a t e s t a S H O F F N E R T A K E S O V E R O N E O F H- T OWN ’ S T O P P R O G R AMS A NEW ERA

Kinslee Smi th wi l l be the one to get everyone going from the setter posi tion after registering 1 , 359 assists last season. She was the District Setter of the Year. Kai lyn Lee, Kiersten Hay and Katie Koonts wi l l also provide the defense as they dive al l over the f loor.

vol leybal l star. She wi l l play her col lege bal l at HBU. She led the Bearkats wi th 586 digs a year ago. “Having a huge competi tive spiri t wi l l be a key to our success ,” Hei lbrun said. “We have to come out every practice and treat i t l ike i t ’s a game. When i t ’s game time, we have to play to win.”

Shoffner wi l l get to work wi th Nor th Carol ina A&T commi t Mikala Sampson (284 ki l ls , 48 blocks). She wi l l need a big season in the middle and outside for Klein to have another breakout season. “Like in years past , I want our team to get hyped on the bus rides and in pregame, so we can play loose and calm,” Sampson said. “ That wi l l be key for us because we have some new girls stepping up. “We need to work on fundamentals early on. We have a ton of raw talent , but we need to get them high cal iber ready.” Rachel Hei lbrun (259 ki l ls) is a complete beast as a 6-rotation star. Her versati l i t y can be attributed to her success as a sand

ONE OF THE BIG BRANDS IN HOUSTON-AREA VOLLEYBALL OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS HAVE BEEN THE KLEIN BEARKATS. Can they continue their success? Looking to bui ld on the ‘Kats winning record is State Championship winning coach Cameron Shoffner. In 2018, Shoffner was an assistant on the staff at Kingwood Park when the Panthers won the Class 5A State Championship. The past two seasons , he was at New Caney and now takes over Klein. Shoffner inheri ts a program that reached the Class 6A State Championship game just two years ago in 2020. “It is no secret of the success that they ’ ve had,” Shoffner said. “I ’m

exci ted to bui ld on that and keep i t sustained to where that is the expectation moving forward. “I ’m here to coach them on the cour t , but I ’m preaching communication off the cour t . We are in a societ y that is based behind a screen or keyboard. Having face-to-face interactions , being able to handle emotion and convey a message in a posi tive way has been lost . We are going to work on that , which wi l l make them better leaders for the rest of their l ives .” On the cour t ,

Coach Cameron Shoffner

Klein High’s Kiersten Hay, Kinslee Smith, Mikala Sampson, Katie Koonts [Squatting], Rachel Heilbrun, Lauryn Gonzales and Kailyn Lee

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