FEATURED ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Hannah Rady, Cloverdale

Tuesday, August 28, 2018
Banner Graphic/JOEY BENNETT

Hannah Rady is a senior at Cloverdale and plays volleyball.

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Banner Graphic: You have grown up in a sports household, with your dad [Patrick] being a basketball coach. What do sports mean to you, and what do you think you have learned from them?

Hannah Rady: “They mean a lot to me. A lot of times on the court, I can escape from other things like stress or anything like that. I am a very competitive person, like my dad is, and that helps a lot. Sports have taught me about leadership, and that has carried over into my academics and other things that I do at school. Sports have taught me how to be coachable, how to work with different kinds of people and how to be a great teammate.”

BG: Your job in volleyball, as a setter, is not a glamorous one and is pretty blue-collar. Are you OK with that?

HR: “I like it a lot. Most people don’t like it, because they’re not the one who finishes the point, but I like it because I am someone my teammates can look to and I can run what happens on the floor a little bit. I like making the set to my hitters and watch them kill the ball.”

BG: Have you ever played any other sports besides volleyball?

HR: “No. I started playing volleyball in fifth grade, and just fell in love with it. I love how fast-paced it is, and everything is just happening so fast. I love how much of a team sport it is. You can’t have just one person do things for you; you have to work together as a team.”

BG: What else do you do at school besides volleyball?

HR: “I am a member of the National Honor Society, the National Spanish Honor Society, the National Art Honor Society, Spanish Club and I am the senior class president. That’s really excited. I have learned how to communicate with my peers, and also having an open mind to what they have to say. Taking ownership is really important, and learning how to organize.”

BG: What career do you want to go into?

HR: “Right now, I’m looking into social work and school psychology. When I was younger, I had the opportunity to work with a friend who has a children’s ministry and I fell in love with kids and grew a passion for helping kids, and showing them the passion I have learned through God’s grace in my life. In those fields, I can have an opportunity to help kids in those situations.”

BG: What college will you be attending?

HR: “I haven’t decided yet. I’m looking at some Christian colleges, and I’m just starting the application process. I’d like to play volleyball wherever I go. To get recruited, you have to put an emphasis on sending out film. My dad and I have been working on that. It’s important to reach out to coaches and get responses, whether it’s feedback on how I can improve or to find out if they would be interested in me.”

BG: How important has the Crossroads of America [travel] volleyball program been to you?

HR: “It’s been a great experience. I’ve grown so much as a player, and I attributed much of my success to the coaches I have had there. Not only just volleyball, but I have created a lot of lifelong friends.”

BG: You are on your third coach this year in the past three years. How is this year shaping up?

HR: “This team has gone really great. We have great team chemistry this year, the best we have ever had. Our coach [Sam Jones] has done an awesome job to create expectations for us, and we have all bought into that. We have put a lot of work in, on skill work and basic fundamentals, and we have also spent time in the weight room this year. That has helped us get stronger and faster. We have a great opportunity in our upcoming tourneys, and I’m excited to see all we have.”

BG: What do you like to do when you are not doing anything school-related?

HR: “I like to hang out with my friends, We go shopping a lot, and go out to eat. I love ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ or anything about criminal cases like ‘Criminal Minds’ or ‘Prison Break’. I listen to a lot of Christian music, and I enjoy romantic movies.”

BG: You are an only child. Do you like that?

HR: “I do. I get all the attention, and I don’t have to share my parents’ time. I have friends who have siblings, and I like my alone time.”

BG: What is your greatest fear?

HR: “Birds. They are dirty and have a lot of diseases. They just freak me out. One time I didn’t get into the car because a bird was underneath.”

BG: What are your favorite and least favorite foods?

HR: “My favorite would be any kind of pasta, and my least favorite is Chinese.”

BG: What is something you have never done before but would like to do someday?

HR: “I really want to go on a mission trip to Africa to get to know their culture better and be able to help the kids there.

BG: After college, do you want to live around here or somewhere else?

HR: “If I had my pick, I would not be in Indiana and would be somewhere warm like Florida or California.”

BG: Summarize your overall Cloverdale experience.

HR: “I like small schools, where you know everybody and you have closer relationships with people. It creates more of a family within the school itself.”

BG: What goals do you have for the rest of the year?

HR: “We would like to win the county in volleyball and also the sectional.”

BG: You’ve had a parent teaching in the building for the past several years [her mother Jonna teaches at the middle school]. Is that good or bad?

HR: “Some people wouldn’t like it, but I don’t mind. I have a close relationship with my parents, and I like knowing they are around. I have my dad twice a day this year. I didn’t have my mom as a teacher; she changed grades the year I would have had her.”

BG: What has it been like watching your dad coach the basketball team over the past few years?

HR: “I get kind of nervous, but I love it though. I love being able to experience being the county and sectional titles we have won when I have been in high school and being able to celebrate it with him. I am really, really proud of him for all the work he puts in. I don’t think a lot of people realize how much time he puts in to be that successful. It’s a lot of time.”