It's early July, and while most University students are busy working for minimum wage, Shannon Davis is in Salt Lake City steamrolling some of the best club volleyball players in the nation.
Davis, a freshman who will compete for the starting middle position over the next few weeks, comes to Virginia with a little more experience than the average recruit. This summer, the Texas native led her club team, Austin Juniors 18 Mizuno, to the gold medal at the USA Junior Olympic Volleyball Championships and picked up the MVP award for her division.
"Nationals are so much fun because it's the best of the best," Davis said. "You can watch really good volleyball, play really good volleyball and be a part of it. It's really exciting to be around that many people that enjoy the sport so much."
For all the prestige and awards, however, something had to give.
"In June, we practiced five times a week, so I didn't really have a life then," Davis said.
After a short month to live the life of a regular high school graduate, it was time to pack for Charlottesville. Davis, whose sister Paige was one of the first Cavaliers to be named an All-American in volleyball, already was familiar with her new home.
"I looked at a bunch of schools in the ACC as well, and my sister had gone here, so I knew about it and had visited it a bunch," Davis said. "I didn't want to go here until I visited other places and realized how special Virginia was."
Luckily for Davis and her fellow newcomers, the team's upperclassmen stepped up to help with typical first-year problems.
"[The older players] are really nice, offering to give us rides and stuff because we don't have cars," Davis said. "They've made the transition so easy."
Another person instrumental in Davis's transition has been head coach Melissa Aldrich Shelton, who had high praise for the freshman.
"Shannon's natural quickness and innate desire to win more than make up for her smaller stature in the middle position," Shelton wrote on the team's Web site. "She has enough high level experience to compete for playing time right away."
One of Davis's first tastes of college volleyball will come close to home. This weekend, the team plays its first tournament in College Station, Texas, a two-and-a-half hour drive from Austin. Compare this to the distance from Texas to Charlottesville, though and the games might as well be in Davis's backyard.
"I'm so excited," Davis said. "A lot of my friends are going to come down, so it's nice to be able to play close to home because I'm really far away [here]."
Thus far, a national tournament, a month of practice and a tour of the country through Texas, Utah and Virginia hasn't seemed to faze the freshman. To top it all off, Davis will compete for the starting middle spot in front of family and friends during the first week of the season. Without a doubt, Virginia volleyball has a player who can handle the pressure.
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