ORLANDO, Fla. — Outside hitter Kierstin Bevelle is already in line to play volleyball collegiately, but it took some tough love growing up for her to truly appreciate the sport. She grew up around the sport as the youngest of five, with all her siblings being boys.

They are the ones who got her into the sport by playing in the backyard.

"I was always dragged into their games. I didn’t like volleyball at first," said Bevelle. "They were always good at their sports, so they wanted me to be at the sport. So, they would take me backyard and they would just drill me with balls over and over and over again until I got good at passing."

And the backyard drills worked. After she is done at Lake Highland Prep, she will be playing at Florida Atlantic University. One of the biggest reasons why she picked FAU is because of the coaching staff.

"They changed my vision for a college that I wanted. I came in thinking I would possibly want something else, but they totally changed my thought process," she said.

Bevelle has big aspirations in the sport after she is done at FAU.

"I do want to end up in the pros and I want to get a title and a gold medal in the pros/Olympics," said Bevelle.

But to attain those goals, one needs a competitive spirit. It's one of her favorite things about volleyball.

"I really love the competition of it because the girls I play are very competitive and I grew up in a competitive family," she said.

Before leaving for Boca Raton, Bevelle wants to leave her mark at Lake Highland Prep.

"Owning every moment, because our biggest goals is to win states, so we want to be in every moment together," she said. "So, I would say that has impacted me or at least that quote in a very positive way."