Whether they have seen Jenny Harmon as a player or as a volunteer coach, in the weight room or in the classroom, those around her observe two qualities shining through all of her work: her intense competitiveness and her selfless desire to aid whomever needs assistance.
Developing the maturity to meld these two potentially opposing characteristics together has made Harmon, a fourth-year junior co-captain on the Virginia women's volleyball team, into much more than a great athlete. It has made her an incredibly diverse person who is a wonderful representative for the University.
"Jenny brings a fierce competitiveness to the team," Virginia coach Melissa Aldrich Shelton said. "She is out to win, no matter what the drill, whether it is a little warm-up game of tag or the ACC championships. She is out to win every time she steps foot into a game or some place where score is kept. But to be a leader you have to focus in on what's good for the team. She's really had to find a balance, and she's done a very, very good job of it so far."
Though there have been a number of high points during her career at Virginia, the last three years have not been easy for Harmon. In addition to facing the readjustments common to all incoming first years, she has had to compete for playing time and battle recurring physical ailments that caused her to redshirt her freshmanyear.
In order to help the team, she has trained at several different positions instead of focusing on one. Even now, as a senior and returning starter, her position is being redefined after the Cavaliers struggled in early-season matches. She is capable of playing every position and is Virginia's all-purpose player.
Her responses to these trials and her unflagging support of the team have been Harmon's best demonstrations of maturity and leadership, earning her the continued respect of teammates who remember her kindness just as much as her competitiveness.
"She's a good leader, and she really wants to be involved in the whole team," sophomore defensive specialist and fellow co-captain Whitney Ashcraft said. "Last year, as we were coming in, she really helped us, showing us the ropes and letting us know how the whole program works. Usually the fourth years are the people that give you a hard time and tell you what you need to do, but Jenny showed us the ropes in a nice way and helped us out a lot."
"One of her strengths is being such a well-rounded person," sophomore setter Abby Whittenburg said. "It's fun to look up to her, and see how, not only with volleyball, she has put together her life outside of volleyball. She's done so much and she's a good person to look up to in that regard."
The list of responsibilities that Harmon has balanced while at Virginia is impressive. Besides volleyball and her course work in the Commerce school, Harmon is a sister of Delta Delta Delta sorority, an adviser for the honor system and a volunteer coach for a local YMCA basketball league. The extracurricular activity that most excites Harmon, however, is her work as a trustee for the Class of 2002. Selected by the class president and serving a seven-year term, the trustees job promote class participation and togetherness.
"We are chosen by the class president, and we organize all fourth-year events," Harmon said. "It has been tough trying to live up to those expectations as a trustee, but that is something that I'm really excited about next semester and the future."
With a year of eligibility remaining, Harmon sees many ways in which her volleyball career has helped her grow and she plans to return to the Cavaliers next year. But she places her relationships with others before all of those personal gains.
Playing "has taught me that sacrifice is pretty critical to achieving whatever I want to do in life," Harmon said. "I'm glad that I've done it. It has definitely helped build my character and strength as a person. But the best thing that I've gotten out of this is teammates that will be friends for a long time"
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