Every team needs a leader, no matter how successful or not the
season may be.
For Rock Canyon High School volleyball, Kenzi Mitzner is that
leader. The top outside hitter for the Jaguars, Mitzner serves as
captain for a second season and her senior year.
The Jaguars have eight seniors on their varsity team this
season, and Mitzner said this season is all about them having
fun.
“A thing for seniors, we’re just trying to have fun our last
year and make it as far as we can,” Mitzner said. “Last year, we
made it to regionals. We’re a really, really good team, but as
seniors we’re just trying to have fun with it.”
Mitzner came to volleyball when she was in the fifth grade
having left soccer to switch sports. She’s played for Rock Canyon
all four of her high school years. As an outside hitter, the senior
demonstrates a high amount of power, but it’s her role as a leader
she feels is her greatest strength.
“It’s my job to be the leader. It’s my job to help anyone who is
down. It’s my job to be consistent. It’s my job to pretty much be
the role of the captain, and that’s what I’m trying to fulfill,”
Mitzner said.
One aspect of the senior’s game that makes her a versatile
player in several positions is her reflexes. She said it could come
from both her years in soccer and coming from a very sports-minded
family.
“I would say it’s pretty natural,” Mitzner said. “I was a goalie
for soccer, so I’m used to jumping at things. My brother went to
Georgetown for lacrosse. My whole family is sports. … I think it’s
natural and something I’ve worked on.”
Although she describes herself as not the tallest or the biggest
outside hitter, the senior has plenty of upcoming options for
playing at the post-secondary level. With one offer in hand,
Mitzner is speaking to Montana State and Idaho State among others
before making a final decision.
She said being in her senior season with colleges eyeing her,
she feels pressure on her grades and when she feels she has to put
the pen to paper.
“There’s a lot of pressure on when I want to sign,” Mitzner
said. “I want to sign in November, but at the same time, I don’t
know if I want to sign with a Division II or a Division I school.
It all depends on what kind of offer I get and what comes with
it.”
Being relied upon for coming up with big hits, the senior
listens to Screamo music to get pumped prior to game time.
“[It] kind of makes me angry, but the anger is a good thing,”
she said. “It just makes me want to go up there and kill the ball.
And do everything I can offensively.”
It’s the competition that drives Mitzner and keeps in the sport
of volleyball. She said she’s a competitive person and volleyball
fits into her personality perfectly.
“Volleyball is a very, very competitive sport, and I like the
fact that I have five other people behind my back, doing whatever
we can,” Mitzner said. “It’s a good number. I’m not alone, and I’m
not with a bunch of people.”
As of the Jaguars’ Sept. 16 game against Arapahoe (3-1
Warriors), Mitzner averaged 13.25 kills per match. She had 16
against the Warriors, 16 against Mitchell in the Jags’ season
opener and 22 against Mullen. she also put up 20 digs against
Arapahoe and 20 against Fort Lupton. At the loss to Arapahoe, Rock
Canyon had a 5-3 start to its season.
