When she was 17 years old, freshman Berkley Whaley decided to forego her final semester in high school in favor of workouts in Florida’s weight room.
Whaley was enrolled in classes at UF and trained with coach Mary Wise and the volleyball team less than two months after signing her national letter of intent to play for UF on Nov. 9.
“Mary suggested, if I wanted, to come up a semester early,” Whaley said. “It would be a great opportunity to take advantage of the weight room, the adjustment to the actual college life and practices. It’s been beneficial in the aspect of playing with the other girls and getting a groove going with them.”
While in high school, Whaley was named The St. Petersburg Times’ Pinellas County Player of the Year as a sophomore. Along with fellow Gator Nikki O’Rourke, Whaley led the Pinellas Heat to a national runner-up finish at the 2010 AAU Nationals.
Because Whaley adjusted to college life early, Wise started her in Florida’s season opener against FIU. Whaley led all freshmen with 10 kills, three digs, 11 points and an ace.
“Berkley has had some significant playing time with the injury to Noami (Santos-Lamb),” associate head coach Dave Boos said. “We’ve had the chance to have a lot of freshmen out there on the outsides. Berkley is a player that’s continued to develop, and she’s a very skilled ball-control player.”
Although she played only one set on the road last weekend, Whaley has excelled in the O’Connell Center. Whaley ranks second behind Ziva Recek among true freshmen with 27 kills, five aces, four blocks, 11 digs and 34.5 points in her 12 sets at home.
“All it takes for a skilled ball control player like Berkley is to come in and get the experience at the college level,” Boos said. “It’s a very different game compared to high school and club, but she’s adapting really well and you can see every day she keeps getting better at it.”
Contact Katie Agostin at kagostin@alligator.org.
Freshman Berkley Whaley (1) spike the ball over the net during Florida's match against Florida Gulf Coast at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center on Aug. 25.
