O'Brien Looking to Build on Huge Freshman Season

During Kentucky volleyball’s fall camp last season, then-freshman setter Kassie O’Brien was locked in a battle for the starting job. She would eventually take over that role, and then she had a season that she will never forget.

O’Brien led the Cats to the NCAA title match, was named AVCA National Freshman of the Year, SEC Freshman of the Year and AVCA First-Team All-Region. She recorded 1,278 assists, the fifth-highest total at Kentucky during the rally scoring era. Did O’Brien have any clue that her freshman campaign would be so special?

“No, not at all. It was definitely a huge dream come true,” O’Brien said. “I think it was just a bunch of hard work that went into it.”

She learned a lot about herself last season as a person.

“I think coming out on the court and finding a different way to lead,” O’Brien said. “Just going out there, using my voice, not being afraid, playing with confidence.”

O’Brien also learned a lot about herself as a player.

“I think just finding different ways to orchestrate the offense,” she said. “Everything gets bigger when you get to college, so just finding those ways. And decision making has been huge.”

Now back for her sophomore season, O’Brien is ready to build on her accomplishments.

“Last year was amazing, but I think going into this year, just continuing to push every single day will be super important,” O’Brien said. “I think just using that (experience), I kind of know what it’s like now. So, being able to settle in, take a deep breath and be like, I’ve been here before. Using that as a confidence booster when I get onto the court has been something I’ve already felt going into this season.”

O’Brien spent the offseason working on things she knew she needed to improve.

“Speed in general, direction, movements,” she said. “I want to be a little bit faster on the court. So, that was something I worked on in the offseason. Then, just doing better on defense.”

As she did last season, O’Brien will have several weapons available to her on offense. Brooklyn DeLeye, Lizzie Carr and Asia Thigpen are all back, and UK added Notre Dame transfer Morgan Gaerte. O’Brien loves having so many offensive option.

“It’s an amazing feeling, as a setter,” O’Brien said. “I can set anyone and know that they will be able to put the ball away.”

The Cats face a daunting early-season schedule, playing as many as seven ranked opponents in the pre-conference schedule. O’Brien believes that last season, especially near the end, prepared the team to take on such a difficult challenge.

“I’ll use the SEC Tournament, for example. We played three games back-to-back-to-back. It’s a grind. So, I think knowing that and using the preseason and two-a-days, those practices, those prepare you so much for the season.”

After an amazing first season in Lexington, O’Brien is ready to build on her success.