SUBWAY STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: HALEIGH KELLEY, RUIDOSO HIGH SCHOOL

Haleigh Kelley is a sophomore at Ruidoso High School and she loves to be involved.  Haleigh competes in volleyball, cheer and then softball in the spring.

“I actually started it (softball) my eighth grade year,” she said.  She quickly found out you never know if you’ll like something until you try it. Her drive to stay active led her to the diamond.  “I really wanted to work out after school and said, ‘Oh, I don’t need a sport.  I’ll just come work out after school.’”

Mom didn’t go for that suggestion.

“It was the first day of tryouts and my mom said, ‘No, you need to go play a sport.’  So, I said I was going to go run track.  She said, ‘Nope, you’re going to go play softball.’  I said ok and I really ended up liking the sport.”

Mom’s influence played a part in Haleigh’s love for volleyball too.  Her mother played collegiate volleyball and love for the game rubbed off on her daughter.  “I remember I got my first pair of knee pads and was like, ‘This is so cool, this is going to be my sport forever,” she recalled.

Haleigh just started cheer this year.  The idea of tossing one of her classmates up over her head appealed to her outgoing personality.  “Cheer sounded fun and I want to go to state,” she said enthusiastically.  “I also want to throw girls into the air, that sounds fun.” Haleigh made it clear she prefers doing the throwing, not being the one thrown in the air.

What motivates her to compete? Winning.

“I’m a really competitive person,” she said. “I love winning and I like playing the game.”  Haleigh also appreciates the support you get from a team atmosphere.  “Even if you don’t have friends throughout the school year, you know you can always fall back on your teammates and I think that’s really cool.  You build a little community in your sport.”