“My favorite hobby is volleyball. I’ve been playing since third grade, and I play for a club outside of school, and I also play for the school team. I love the supportive environment in volleyball, and everyone on the club team is my best friend, so volleyball is a way I get to see them almost every day. There was once when I sprained my ankle, and it took me out for a couple of weeks. It’s a bad feeling because you just have to sit on the sidelines and watch your teammates play, and sometimes your teammates will be losing and you can’t do anything to help them. I usually end up spraining my ankle at least once a season, though, so I’ve gotten used to it since almost everyone gets hurt at least once a season. What keeps me motivated in volleyball is not wanting to let my teammates down. I know some of them want to play volleyball in college, and so I always want to play my best to give them the best games and not take away any of their opportunities.” – Abby Vogelgesang, 11