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Lanett hosted some of the local youth in Chambers County on Thursday and Friday for a volleyball camp led by Head Coach Krissie Story and Lanett’s players. 

The camp began each morning at 8:30 and went until 11:30 a.m. The fee for the camp was $30 for each participant and was limited to kids ages six to 13. The campers were provided with snacks, a t-shirt and each participant will be given entry to an upcoming tournament that Lanett will host. 

Story believes that camps like this one are important to help grow volleyball in Chambers County. There are no youth or recreation volleyball programs currently in the area. Therefore, this camp serves as an introduction to volleyball for most of the kids. 

“I think it’s extremely important,” Story said. “Volleyball in our area is not well established. I think it’s important for us to start them when they’re young because volleyball is a tough sport. It’s not one of those things you can kind of pick up and put down like basketball.” 

Lanett High School has only had a volleyball program for around 13 years. Story has been the leader of the program for the past 10 years. 

Most of the kids at the camp were from this area. Two of the participants at the camp were from Michigan, but every other camper was either from Lanett or Chambers County. Many of the campers could eventually get the opportunity to play for the varsity team. Teaching the campers these skills at such a young age should make Lanett’s program that much better. 

“That’s one of the things that I’m looking at that it will help us tremendously,” Story said. “As we continue to grow our program, if we can introduce volleyball to these girls at a younger age, and 

they become more interested in it at a younger age, they’ll be better to perform. They’ll be way ahead of their counterparts and way ahead of what most of our girls have been who have not even been introduced to volleyball until their seventh grade.” 

The $30 fee helped to provide some of the accommodations for the campers, but the camp also served as a fundraiser for the team. A portion of the funds will go toward paying for each player’s spirit pack for the upcoming season. 

The tournament that the campers will get to attend will be hosted by Lanett. The tournament will be in honor of Kawana Tucker. Tucker was an assistant coach for Lanett that passed away unexpectedly last year. 

“We’re gonna have the Kawana Tucker Memorial Volleyball Tournament,” Story said. “This will be our first time doing that. We have five teams that have already committed to that.” 

This will not only be the first tournament in Tucker’s honor, but this tournament will also be the first volleyball tournament that Lanett has ever hosted. Story is hoping that this tournament will help the team be better prepared for postseason tournaments. 

“We generally don’t play on Saturday,” Story said. “Last year during our area tournament we had to play on Saturday, and it did not go well at all. So this year, I wanted to do something to help us to get ready and prepare for those types of times.” 

Most of us can remember being younger and looking up to high school athletes. This camp gave the local youth in our area a chance to learn from some of their role models. 

“Just watching the girls, watching their faces, I think they’re excited,” Story said. “They appear to be excited. They appear to be learning a lot. I heard a couple of them say ‘I’m ready to come back tomorrow. How many days is this?’ I think it is helping to generate that excitement that we’re looking for to help push volleyball in our area.” 

A great way to learn and build on a skill is to teach it to someone else. The camp served as an opportunity for the varsity players to grow their knowledge by teaching the game to other people.

“I think it helps to build their confidence and show them that they actually know more than they think they know,” Story said.