More than the sport: Athlete Spotlight Series - Layne Witherspoon

9 Oct 2024

Augusta University Athletics

written by Augusta University student Jaylan Hayes

Witherspoon - Figure 1 — Photo Augusta University Athletics

Being from Wildwood, Missouri Augusta University just fell into the lap of Layne Witherspoon, a sophomore on the volleyball team. Besides what she calls some weird southern things and the humidity everything feels normal to her here.

Witherspoon came in with a declared major of biology but is thinking of changing it to kinesiology. She's not entirely sure what she wants to do with this, but she loves learning and knows she has time to figure it out.

"I know I don't what to go to pre-med. I don't want to be a doctor. But I do like physician assistant a lot or a radiology tech," Witherspoon said

While volleyball is the sport she loves and plays now, it's not what she started with.

"I did softball first, because my parents wanted me to do a sport, and I hated it. I was too scared to hit the ball in the game, so I was very bad," she said.

After giving up softball, her parents told her she still needed to do a sport, so they signed her up for volleyball. It's a sport that her family, particularly her mother, was very familiar with.

Witherspoon's parents were both athletes at the University of Georgia. Her father, Will, played football and her mother Rebecaa, played volleyball.

"She didn't really do much after college with volleyball. So, when I started, that was her first introduction to being back in the sport," she said.

It's become a family affair as her two younger sisters, Maya and Shaye, are also taking to the court. Witherspoon is a part of a very athletic family.

Witherspoon - Figure 2 — Photo Augusta University Athletics

While she can admit she had no idea what she was doing at first in volleyball, being a perfectionist helped her learn quickly.

One of her favorite memories in the sport happened her senior year of high school playing against their rival school with her sister Maya.

"We lost to them the previous year and my poor sister was the one that hit it out on game point. That was rough and she was only a freshman too. But then the next year she got the game winning point. It was so exciting, we were hugging and just so happy," said Witherspoon.

When she's not busy she likes to catch up on sleep and read a good mystery book. If she had the time, she would love to be able to have a Great Dane. She would also love to be able to travel to her dream destination, Scotland.

"I want to go so bad. I've heard it's gorgeous and the temperature is nice. It's pretty, but it's not traditional pretty like beaches," said Witherspoon.

Going from high school to college was a change of pace. Even as a sophomore it can still be challenging. Because of this she looks up to both Janvier Buggs and Giulia Rodrigues on the team when feeling stressed.

"They know the game, they know how to get out of your head, they're very reliable people," she said.

She hopes to eventually be that person for her teammates. Witherspoon is ready to see where the rest of the season is going to take them.

Volleyball schedule

Players Mentioned