It’s a Thursday night, and the stands are full of friends and family. Six people are on the court. She steps up to the base line, ready to serve, shaking the pressure off. She serves the ball with an amazing jump serve. The game is in play.

Freshman Emma Stewart has played volleyball since the third grade. For seven years, she played for many different schools and club teams. Through the hardship of moving schools and homes, she stuck with her true passion, playing volleyball.

“I’m not sure how I got into it,” Stewart said. “I think a friend was telling me that they were playing volleyball, so I just was like ‘I’ll do it too’.”

Stewart first started playing volleyball in Austin, Texas, where she lived with her mom, stepdad, and her four siblings.

“The place where I did volleyball first was called WAYA,” Stewart said. “It was like this little tiny club volleyball where it was like the parents were coaches.”

After many years of playing volleyball, Stewart has played many different types of volleyball including school volleyball, club volleyball and sand. When faced with the choice between the three, club volleyball has to be her favorite.

“I really like playing club volleyball. I mean I like school volleyball, but I think club is better because you get to meet a bunch of new people and get to know them really well,” Stewart said. “Everyone is kind of really tight-knit.”

Stewart’s passion for volleyball has stuck with her everywhere she’s moved. Though moving was hard for her, Stewart found a way to keep pursuing her sport while making new friends.

“It was hard moving from Austin to Fredericksburg to find a new club,” Stewart said. “I did find one.”

Since moving to Fredericksburg from Austin, Stewart now plays volleyball for the Battlin’ Billies and Next Level, a club volleyball team based in Kerrville. Stewart must make time in her busy schedule to meet the demands of both teams.

“It depends if it’s club volleyball or sand or school volleyball, but in school volleyball practice was every day for two hours after school, and then games once or twice a week,” Stewart said. “Club is more relaxed; we have practice twice a week and then tournaments three times a month.”

Although Stewart is kept busy with her many activities from day to day, she has never had the urge to quit.

“I’ve just always really loved it,” Stewart said. “I used to think I would have to quit because I didn’t think we would be able to afford club anymore and that scared me, but we ended up finding a way to pay for it, so I’ve gotten to play. It pushes me to work hard, and club is also an escape from stress, that’s why I don’t want to quit.”

With so much time playing volleyball, Stewart has lots of experience. She knows the rules and the dynamics of the court. With experience, she also has great advice.

“Don’t get down on yourself. It’s really hard in volleyball to keep a positive attitude,” Stewart said. “It really shows on the court when you don’t have a positive attitude, so try to stay positive.”