THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Little Elm High School Athletics

The Little Elm volleyball team is enjoying a historic turnaround behind second-year Lady Lobos head coach Kelly Covert, and a big reason why the Lady Lobos have started 13-3 is the play of senior Kali Liva. Liva has seen it all in her three seasons with Little Elm’s top team, playing under two head coaches all while seeing the Lady Lobos improve from eight wins her sophomore year to nine last season to 10 games above .500 through 16 matches this year. Whether it involves a hit, block, dig or set, Liva plays all six rotations for Little Elm and she does it with confidence. Named an all-district honorable mention as a sophomore and a first-team honoree as a junior, Liva credits beach volleyball for allowing her to be successful at every position that she plays. During Little Elm’s 25-23, 24-26, 25-13, 24-26, 15-9 road win over Sherman on Aug. 15, Liva had a team-high nine kills to go along with 20 assists. Three days later against Krum, she logged four kills and four assists in a 25-21, 25-23 victory for Little Elm. On Tuesday, Liva finished off a 23-25, 26-24, 25-21, 25-21 win for the Lady Lobos over Frisco Heritage with a kill from the right side. In this week’s Star Local Media student-athlete profile, Liva chats about Little Elm’s improvement, playing multiple positions and her first memories of playing volleyball. SLM: Little Elm already has 13 wins – four more than all of last season and five more than all of 2021. What has been the biggest reason behind the team’s improvement? KL: Team chemistry. The past couple of years, we’ve kind of argued a lot. We didn’t have the right team chemistry. But this year, we’ve been doing a lot of team bonding and doing a lot of stuff outside of volleyball. Our team chemistry on the court has been a big factor of why we have been winning a lot of games, because we work together well as a team. We want it so bad this year. Our work ethic is through the roof every practice. We’re hustling. We are trying 100% of the time. SLM: Was there a team camp or another event during the offseason that demonstrated Little Elm’s improved team chemistry? KL: We went to camps. We did the TWU camp with the coaches and players, which was really nice. We do a lot of team bonding with some dinners and some sleepovers. We’re all friends. We like to hang out as much as we can. SLM: You play multiple positions for Little Elm. Describe what it is like to have to play hitter, setter and defense at the same time. KL: It’s definitely difficult but I try to play one step at a time. If I’m in the back row, I’m playing defense. If I’m in the front row, I’m focused on setting and hitting. I’m just trying to get the ball in the right spot and hit It into the right seams. SLM: What are your first memories of playing volleyball? KL: I first started playing volleyball when I was 6 years old, and when I first started playing club when I was 11, I got put at setter. Slowly, I started playing everyone. Whenever I hit my growth spurt, I played hitter. I also played beach volleyball. In beach volleyball, I have to play every position. I play passer, setter and hitter. So when I’m on the court, I have to play that position. Whenever I played beach volleyball for the first time, I fell in love with it. It’s such a great environment. I’m looking into college for beach volleyball. SLM: What did you do during the offseason to prepare for your senior season? KL: A lot of drills at home. I worked a lot on the court. I ran every day – just anything that I could do to prepare for the season. SLM: How would you describe the chemistry that you have with Little Elm’s senior class? KL: I love it. We’re all friends. I’ve been with them since my seventh-grade year. I’ve gotten to know them and we’ve become really good friends. I feel like they’re part of my family. SLM: Who are your favorite volleyball players? KL: Logan Eggleston and Katie Hansen, who is a member of my club team and just committed to SFA.

THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Little Elm High School Athletics

LIVA’S VERSATILITY FUELING LITTLE ELM’S 13-3 START

BY DAVID WOLMAN | STAR LOCAL MEDIA

Star Local Media | 9/8/2023

PHOTO CREDIT: Liva’s versatility fueling Little Elm’s 13-3 start