Franklin’s Kelsay continues to deliver

<p><strong>F</strong>ranklin volleyball coach Jess Giles knows a thing or two about what it takes to play major college volleyball.</p><p>She’s certain that Cami Kelsay has got the goods.</p><p>Giles, a two-time Daily Journal Player of the Year during her days as a Grizzly Cub, went on to play as an outside hitter at Butler and then at Indiana. The first-year head coach sees some similarities between herself and her star senior; Kelsay has the same intelligence and competitive streak, for example.</p>[sc:text-divider text-divider-title="Story continues below gallery" ]<p>One key difference? “She’s leagues ahead of me defensively,” Giles said.</p><p>Kelsay’s all-around brilliance has been the main driver for a Franklin team that has been trying to find itself against a tough early-season schedule. She’s averaging double figures in kills for the Grizzly Cubs, collecting 19 in a recent showdown with rival Center Grove, and she’s second on the team in digs behind libero Chloe Hoy.</p><p>A starter since her freshman season, Kelsay spent her first three years playing alongside classmate Kabria Chapman, with both earning All-County honors last fall. With Chapman choosing to pass up volleyball this year in order to focus on swimming, Kelsay knew she’d be carrying a much heavier burden — but as much as she misses her former running mate, she has confidence that her teammates can fill the void.</p><p>“It was definitely a bummer,” Kelsay said, “because we’ve been playing for so long and I was really looking forward to having a senior year with her, but I definitely think (freshman Scarlett Kimbrell) has a lot of potential and I think she’s been doing a great job stepping into that position.”</p><p>With Kimbrell making an immediate impact and returning players such as seniors Lindsey Hughes, Lauren Sandrock and Megan Thompson and juniors Hoy and Haley Haldeman taking on bigger roles, Kelsay and Giles both see big things on the horizon for the Grizzly Cubs this season. The team has had its ups and downs, losing its first Mid-State Conference match since 2013 and suffering through a seven-match losing streak at one point, but the potential is there to compete for championships come season’s end.</p><p>Kelsay saw it in last week’s four-set battle against the Trojans, even though her side came up on the losing end after winning the first set.</p><p>“I think that shows we can run with them and we can beat them,” Kelsay said. “We just have to work on finishing and keeping the same momentum and energy throughout all of the sets, not just winning one and then letting up a little bit. We have to have that same drive throughout the whole match, and if we do that consistently, I think we can definitely run with the better teams.”</p><p>“I definitely think we can make up some serious ground,” Giles agreed. “As long as we’re mentally ready, I think we can take it to any team.”</p><p>After she graduates, Kelsay would like to continue playing at the collegiate level. Currently uncommitted, she’s trying not to let the pressure from the recruiting process — one that has become all the more challenging due to the current pandemic — get to her.</p><p>“It’s super hard right now, as you might guess, because of everything that’s going on,” Kelsay said. “It’s definitely very stressful knowing everything is so uncertain right now, but everyone is in the same position as me, all of the players that haven’t committed. … But it’s definitely added a little bit of pressure not knowing what I’m doing yet.”</p><p>Though the future might remain murky for the time being, Giles has no doubt that Kelsay belongs at the next level.</p><p>“She’s extraordinarily talented; there’s no secret about that,” the coach said. “(And) she has the mindset of a collegiate athlete.”</p>