AMONG THE TALENTED INDIVIDUALS ON GOOSE CREEK MEMORIAL’S VOLLEYBALL TEAM, SENIOR OH ARACELY NUNEZ HAS ESTABLISHED HERSELF AS ONE OF THE TEAM’S KEY FIGURES.
Considering the impressive explosiveness and awareness she’s shown on the court, it’s no wonder Nunez has become an offensive weapon from the outside spot for both GCM and her club team (Xcel).
Now that she enters her senior season, it goes without saying that she’ll be the alpha of the group.
“I think I have pretty good leadership skills,” said Nunez. “When I’m with my team, I feel like I’m naturally friendly and try to lead by example, which I feel like they pick upon when it’s game-time.”
It’s not difficult to see why Nunez has such a rapport with her teammates. Her likable personality makes it easy for her volleyball peers to interact with her.
However, it might be surprising to hear that she also plays golf in her free time. Though the two sports may seem unrelated, Nunez has gained a valuable trait through it.
“Patience,” she said. “I’m continually learning how to be patient in both sports, especially with the short game in golf. It can be really difficult, since I just started playing but it’s so fun and has helped me to focus when I’m trying to accomplish something.”
Nunez certainly has experience in being patient, after she was sidelined for over a year due to an injury she suffered in her sophomore season.
“I tore my ACL during a match a couple of years ago,” Nunez said. “So, I was completely out of the game for the whole season and it was painful. I’d never really been injured before, so it was a pretty traumatic experience. When I came back, I was a more well-rounded player and have never stopped trying to get better.”
While it may have been odd for her to be on the bench rather than on the court in that time span, Nunez’s experience during her recovery didn’t make her complacent in the slightest.
“My observation skills got much better,” she said. “Whenever I was out, I would be helping out with stats on the bench. I also saw how players would react and how they moved on the court. That helped me a lot, seeing the game from a different perspective.”
Given the severity of an ACL tear, one can imagine that Nunez might have been worried about re-injuring her knee when she stepped back onto the court.
“I think about it a little bit,” said Nunez. “I try to not play with fear because doing that would cause me to play down. I have a brace to help support it, so I will just go all-in from now on.”
After returning to volleyball in her junior year, Nunez has done nothing but improve.
She expects the same from her team this Fall.
“We missed out on the playoffs a year ago,” she said. “This season, I really see our potential. Our main goal is the postseason, and I know we’ll be willing to do whatever it takes to achieve it.”