MEADOWS' KARI GREGORY: Leader of the pack

Volleyball newcomer helps drive Mustangs

Kari Gregory could've gone to Stanford on a basketball scholarship, but volleyball has replaced roundball as The Meadows' senior's favorite sport.

Despite only playing volleyball seriously for a few years, Gregory, a 6-foot-3 outside hitter, has performed well enough to earn a scholarship to the University of Hawaii, which is currently the No. 2 college team in the country and has established a strong winning tradition in volleyball.

"It's the best program and the people there are great," said Gregory, who took a pair of unofficial visits to the school. "It's a big family atmosphere."

Gregory, who chose Hawaii over a host of other Division I schools, has experienced a family atmosphere at The Meadows virtually her entire life.

Both of her older brothers, Matt and Adam, also attended the private school, with Matt attending kindergarten in The Meadows' inaugural year in 1984. Kari Gregory has also attended the school since kindergarten.

"This is my life. I've been around it forever," she said prior to Senior Night recently. "We have six seniors on the team, so it's really special. We've been together since the seventh grade. These girls are my best friends. They're like my family."

Gregory, a four-year varsity starter, helped lead the Mustangs -- 23-5 overall and 7-0 in their Southern 2A league at press time -- to the state title last season, and hopes to close out her high school career with an encore.

"We're hoping to take state again. That's our main focus," said Gregory, who leads the team with 6.4 kills per game. "Two years ago we lost at state and that's really stuck with us. Every game we think about that. We talk about it in huddles a lot. We say 'remember what happened two years ago, let's not let it happen again.' It tore us apart."

The Meadows didn't drop a game in last year's state tournament and is considered the favorites again this season as the team opens the Southern 2A playoffs Friday at home.

"We've continued on from where we were last year," head coach Brian Goddard said. "Our goals are to win zone and state. If we play our game, we should have a really good shot at it."

Gregory, named the Southern 2A Most Valuable Player last season, is the undisputed leader of the team.

"Her teammates really look up to her," Goddard said. "She carries the load for us. Besides being a physical presence out there and being an athlete, she's very versatile. She's able to play the back row and the front row and she can pass. She can do it all.

"She's probably in the top three players in Las Vegas. She's just lacking experience. She's only been playing club volleyball for two years."

Gregory said playing club volleyball, for Club Vegas, has helped her game immensely.

"It's helped me a ton. I'd be nowhere without club because they play at a higher level, which makes you play much better," she said. "And you get a lot of experience. You play three to four times as many games as high school.

"I'm a more consistent player and I've taken on more responsibilities this year. I changed positions, from opposite to outside hitter, so I pass more."

Gregory, who plans to focus on club volleyball instead of high school basketball this year -- where she averaged around 20 points, 12 rebounds, four blocked shots and four assists en route to Southern 2A MVP honors the last two seasons -- wants to get stronger for college ball.

"Since I've only been playing three or four years seriously, I need to step it up," she said. "I have to hit the weight room. I need to get stronger.

At Hawaii, Gregory, who has a 3.5 grade-point average, will learn from two all-Americans next season before, hopefully, stepping into a starting role her sophomore year.

"I should see the court my first year and I expect to be the starter my sophomore year," she said.


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