Eastern sophomore outside hitter Kelsey Orr has a former Division I volleyball player for a mom, a fantastic chocolate chip pancake maker in a dad and a sister who she traveled across Europe with. Orr recently sat down with Staff Reporter Richard Morse to talk about why she decided to learn two other languages, how much her mom has helped her volleyball game and the time her relay team broke a sectional record.

What is your favorite thing about playing volleyball?

My favorite thing about it is there isn’t such a thing as a ball hog.

Everyone has to work together as a team.

There can’t be any selfishness out there.

That, and anything where I get to be in anyone’s face. I just love the competitiveness.

What do you like most about Eastern?

Definitely the environment and the people. It’s very unique here in that aspect.

During my recruitment I visited my fair share of schools, and you can’t get this feeling anywhere else.

Nowhere else did anyone remember my name so quickly.

They were more worried about selling themselves.

I love that I can still see teachers now and they still say hi to me. They still remember my name.

What languages do you speak?

I am fluent in English, Spanish and French. For whatever reason it just clicked with me.

My mom was always very into us being very communicable.

I took my first Spanish class in fourth grade, and at one point I even thought about becoming a professional translator.

It was always a fun class to take.

I always enjoyed taking those classes. I hear people say how hard foreign language classes are, and its hard to relate.

I’m lucky that it comes to me a lot easier than for most.

What was it like for your mom to play sports in college?

It’s a challenge in all honesty. I don’t even compare myself to my mom.

She was an amazing player. She’s always been very inspiring. As cliché as that is, she has been.

She had a lot of opportunities playing Big Ten volleyball.

I would only be half the player I am now if it weren’t for her. I wouldn’t have even thought about being at this level if it weren’t for her.

But it is always fun to be competitive.

I love family pick up games when we can really compete. It’s a lot of fun.

How do you feel about the Bears upsetting the Colts?

I don’t want to talk about it.

I turned the game off. I have to deal with a lot of trash talk out here when I wear my Colts gear.

It’s hard enough to deal with being a Colts fan here in Bears country.

It’s an upset, and it won’t happen again.

What was your favorite non-volleyball sports memory?

Pops right into my head right of the bat. It has to be my senior year in track.

We had a really stacked sectional meet.

Every year at least one person always won state.

My (3,200-meter relay) team was seeded seventh, and we were in the faster heat.

I can remember getting the baton, (and) we were in fourth place.

And we ended up winning the relay.

We shattered the sectional record. Just being the underdog and coming out on top. I come from a small high school, and we were the first people to ever do that, so it was a big deal.

What is your favorite

home-cooked meal?

Chocolate chip pancakes. My dad’s chocolate chip pancakes. Every year on your birthday you get to pick your breakfast.

I don’t use any syrup though.

I just drown mine in whipped cream. I love breakfast in general. I’m a breakfast junkie. I could eat it all day.

Do you like the new paint job at Lantz Arena?

I love it. It’s one of those things you don’t notice is bad until it’s gone, but it looks great. It’s really nice.

It makes the arena look great. So good that I don’t really remember what we were playing on before. It looks gorgeous.

What has been your favorite class at Eastern?

My first semester my freshman year, I was a phys-ed major. I had to take a technique and theory class, so I chose tennis and badminton.

We had such a great class.

There wasn’t an awkward moment, and we all just jumped right into it.

It was so competitive. Every match was like the World Series. I’m a horrible tennis player. I’m the queen of badminton though.

What was your favorite

family vacation?

My family travels a lot, so there are a lot to choose from. My favorite one would be right after my junior year of high school.

My sister graduated, so my parents sent her to backpack around Europe. And I somehow talked my parents into letting me go with her, so my sister and I who get along great, we just jumped country to country. Everywhere from Amsterdam to Paris to Spain. It was just such a privilege to be able to do that. Now I just want to go back, and I want my children to experience it. I want everyone to experience it.

Richard Morse can be reached at 581-7944 or at rjmorse@eiu.edu.

(Drawn from news/Jason Duarte)

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