Volleyball Spotlight: Stacy Carter

It was a toss-up between field hockey and volleyball. But Stacy Carter was tall, and so the decision was made.

Carter, then in the seventh grade, could not have predicted that her extra inches would lead to a collegiate volleyball career.

With the help of an encouraging attitude from her high school coach years later, Carter's volleyball career gradually became more and more intense -- eventually bringing her to West Philadelphia.

"My high school coach told me that I had the potential, which helped," Carter said. "But mostly it was just that I really enjoyed it.

"I love the team aspect of it. It's something that I didn't have in other sports I tried -- like swimming or tennis."

When asked how she chose Penn as her destination, Carter offered several motivations.

"I knew I wanted to go to school in a big city -- that was really the first thing that attracted me. It's a great school and academics are important to me. So I came for a visit and really liked the team and the coaches.

"I just fell in love with the school."

Now over four years later, the Penn senior is recognized not only as an impressive competitive force, but also as a selfless and committed leader of her team.

"Stacey's court presence is a huge part of her game that has developed over the years," fellow senior Kai Gonsorowski said.

"You could see it growing every year -- especially between our sophomore and junior years.

"By junior year she had become so much more confident. You definitely knew when Stacey was on the court."

"Stacey puts in a ton of hard work and as a dedicated player she leads by example," Penn head coach Kerry Carr said. "She is a natural leader in the way she knows how to talk to the other players without coming off as bossy."

As a freshman for the Red and Blue, Carter arrived as an outside hitter. But as the team developed, she realized that a change in position might be necessary and eventually settled in as a right side hitter.

"I just had the mentality that I would go where my team needed me," she said. "I think it worked out well for everyone that way. I also came in at a good time -- we were rebuilding as a team and there were lots of opportunities as a young player."

"Stacey has always been a person who found her way out on the court," Carr said. "Now it's reached a point where we need her to be out there.

"She sees the court very well," Carr said. "She knows where to find the holes in the defense, how to see the block, and she knows where to place the ball. And on top of that, defensively she is one of the strongest blockers in the league."

Last season, Carter was named honorable mention All-Ivy League after helping the Quakers to the Ivy League Championship and their first NCAA Tournament.

She finished sixth in the league in hitting percentage (.264) and had a career-high 25 kills in the Ivy playoff game against Brown on Nov. 20.

Voted captain by her teammates for the past three years, Carter considers her role as a leader on the team as "a great responsibility but never as an extra burden.

"The team is easy to lead. We really don't have many problems, and we all get along really well.

"I have loved being a captain and helping to make team decisions. It's just a great team all around."

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