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School: Greencastle-Antrim
Grade: Senior
Position: Outside hitter
Height: 5-foot-7
Parents: Rick and Deanne Gearhart
Interests: She plays club volleyball for Revolution out of Chambersburg and is part of her church youth group.
2009 statistics: 276 kills, 26 blocks, 218 digs, 64 aces, .262 hitting percentage.
Other honors: MPC Capital Division Player of the Year in 2009 and co-Player of the Year in 2008 ... A 2-time P.O. and MPC first-team all-star ... Honorable mention P.O. all-star in 2007.
In what amounted to a very close decision for the 2009 Public Opinion Girls Volleyball Player of the Year award, Greencastle-Antrim senior outside hitter Kelsey Gearhart was the winner.
Not that Gearhart isn't accustomed to winning.
In her three years on varsity with the Blue Devils, the team racked up a 63-8 record, with three consecutive Mid Penn Capital Division titles and MPC Class AA playoff crowns.
Greencastle also reached at least the District 3 quarterfinals in all three seasons.
It was Gearhart's all-around play -- she was a force at the net, serving and on defense -- during G-A's dominating 2009 season that helped her edge such worthy candidates as McConnellsburg's A'leese Dickerson and Chambersburg's Morgan Lehman.
"Overall this was one of the best teams I've played on," Gearhart said. "We worked well together as a team and accomplished most of our
Gearhart's numbers don't jump off the page, mostly because Greencastle was too busy knocking off its opponent in rather quick fashion.
During a perfect 18-0 regular season that included non-league wins over Chambersburg and Williamsport, Md., and a sweep of rival James Buchanan, the Blue Devils lost just one set.
Greencastle eventually finished 20-2, falling in the district quarterfinals. For the year (including tournaments), G-A was defeated in just 16 of 104 sets.
Gearhart, the Mid Penn Capital Division Player of the Year, was a huge reason why.
"She was very consistent in every aspect of the game," G-A coach Corry Eagler said. "If she needed to step up hitting, she could do so. She mixed her shots up more this year. She hadn't done that in the past. She also was one of our best passers and her jump float (serve) got a lot stronger this year."
The Blue Devils, coming off an appearance in the District 3 Class AA semifinals in 2008, relied on Gearhart while a pair of young middle hitters, including younger sister Nakita, developed.
Eagler said of the soft-spoken Gearhart: "Before every match, the captains would always talk to the team and Kelsey always provided inspirational quotes. She definitely stepped up this year and let people know what needed to be done."
She averaged three kills per set and finished the season with a team-best 275 kills. She played some her best volleyball in the postseason, totaling 32 kills and five blocks in district pool play and racking up nine kills, 12 digs and a pair of aces in a season-ending loss to state-ranked Dover.
Gearhart, who is considering Millersville and Juniata among other colleges, also mustered 19 kills and 21 digs in two Mid Penn playoff victories.
She called the win over Chambersburg her season highlight.
"We knew it was one of our toughest matches of the year," Gearhart said. "It was in their brand new gym and our fans painted their chests. I thought it was going to be tough -- I was surprised we won so easy."
Defensively, Gearhart was a nice option to have in the back row, finishing second on the team in digs, behind libero Katy Bobbitt, with 218. She also chipped in 26 blocks and had a hitting percentage of .262.
While playing club volleyball last year for Revolution out of Chambersburg, Gearhart added a jump serve that helped her pile up easy points for the Blue Devils while amassing 64 aces.
"I worked on my jump serve during club ball and it really helped," she said. "Once I learned to do it right, it wasn't that hard."
In leading G-A to the championship match of the Lady Spartan tournament, she had 35 service points and seven aces to go with 31 kills and 22 digs.
It was this type of all-around skill that had Gearhart atop the Player of the Year list.
"When we needed to make a play," Eagler said, "I was always confident to go to Kelsey in those situations."
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Joel Rineer may be reached at 262-4819 or jrineer@publicopinionnews.com.
