HOLLY POND, Ala. – In this interview, I talked to Holly Pond volleyball and basketball standout Kennedy Twilley. Twilley made a lot of great memories during her years as a Bronco both on and off the court.
“My favorite volleyball memory was when we played in the Vinemont Tournament my senior year and we won the whole tournament, so that was a really good memory for us,” Twilley said. “It was really exciting to play with all of the girls and to be together all day. We were up from seven in the morning until six at night, so it was really fun being able to spend that time with them and just to know that we were up for hours and hours. That’s what we had been working for and we won the tournament, so that was great. One of my favorite basketball memories would have to be when we beat Cold Springs in the county tournament. It was fun because we had struggled with them all year. All throughout the season, we had lost to them and so, in the county tournament, we ended up beating them and advancing. Another favorite basketball memory was when we got runner-up in area and we got to go to the Sub-Regional tournament, so that was a lot of fun getting to go with them.”
Kennedy added,
“Our senior year, we did a senior prank. It was so much fun. We all got together, and we decided that we were going to do a senior prank. We went through the high school, and we put cups and balloons everywhere. We destroyed the school. It was great and the best thing about it is that we decided that our senior skip day was going to be the day after, so we didn’t have to clean it up (laughs). I loved that. It was a lot of fun. I’m sure there was a lot of teachers mad at us, and a lot of teachers knew about it before. I remember I was at work that night and one of the teachers came up to me and was like ‘We know what you all are doing,’ and I was like, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ But they all knew about it, so they all locked their classrooms the night before. Another one would be the Senior Awards Day. We had awards day. We had our caps and gowns on. We got to walk through the high school, the elementary, and middle school and see all of the little kids. It was crazy because times flies by so fast. When you’re walking through those halls, like in the elementary, you’re like, wow, this is crazy that I’m actually graduating. It didn’t feel real for me until I was walking through those halls.”
Kennedy feels lucky to have played for some great coaches during her playing days at Holly Pond and learned an awful lot from them.
“I have three coaches that I would like to thank: Adrian Adams, Andrew Kelley, and Tammy Foust. Tammy was my JV volleyball coach, and we had a real close connection growing up, even when she wasn’t coaching me,” Twilley said. “She was a teacher, but I was still really close with her. I remember, she always used to tell me from the time that I was in eighth grade all the way up to senior year, every time she would see me, she knew I was so nervous before game time. I had so much anxiety and I remember her looking at me and telling me, ‘Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and give it to the Lord.’ She told me that one time during a volleyball game. Whether it would be volleyball or basketball, I would hear that before every single game, and that stuck with me for years. That was great of her telling me that. Me and Tammy had a great connection even though she was only my coach for two years. She was still at every game. Adrien, I can’t thank her enough. She’s a great coach. She gets to know her players on a personal level. She would know when I would start to shut down during games and she would know what to do. She would take me out of the game and tell me, ‘Breathe. You know you can do this. You’re a senior. Your players need you.’ She started coaching me when I was in ninth grade all the way up to my senior year. She knew how I was during the games, so I can’t thank her enough for getting to know me on a personal level.”
Kennedy continued,
“Coach Kelley came into my life my eighth-grade year. He coached me on the JV and varsity. I could tell him anything no matter what and he would always be there to support me, so I can’t thank him enough for being there for me. He always knew what I needed no matter what, and he got to know his players on a personal level. He knew what we needed, and I can’t thank him enough. They were great coaches, and I wouldn’t want to play for any other coaches.”
Kennedy learned so much during her time at Holly Pond and will miss being a Bronco, and playing with her cousin, Kamryn Tankersley.
“I learned that high school-wise, no matter what, you’re always right where you’re supposed to be,” Twilley said. “Growing up, I was always the underclassman and I remembered I was so scared of all of the older girls. I was like, ‘I don’t want to overstep them,’ but I learned that you’re always right where you’re supposed to be. I remember when I was younger, I was so scared of those older girls. But, whenever I got up to senior year and I was the older girl, I was like, ‘I don’t even look at the younger girls as younger than me. I want them to all know that you’re right where you’re supposed to be at the right time.”
Twilley added,
“The thing I’m going to miss the most is going to be Kamryn. We had such a close connection growing up and in sports. It was a great high school experience because Kamryn got moved up to varsity whenever I was in 11th grade. We got to play together my 11th and 12th grade year. I’m going to miss her the most, playing with her. She needed me whenever I was out there, and the coaches knew that. They knew that we needed each other and so, I’m going to miss playing with her the most, because they knew we needed each other on that court just as much as we needed each other off. Not being able to play with her is hard because when she would shut down, no matter how bad I was playing, I knew I needed to step up for her because all she needed was a good talking to. She’s a great player and she gets down on herself so much. I remember Adrian; she would look at me and be like ‘Go talk to Kamryn.’ No matter what any coach said, as long as I was there and could talk Kamryn out of it, she would be fine. I’ll miss being there for her, but no matter what, I’m still going to be supporting her from the stands now and she can always look up there when she needs me.”
Holly Pond will hold a very special place in Kennedy’s heart, and she talked about how important it was for her to be a leader. She also brought up a very special moment she had with the younger girls during a group message.
“Holly Pond is such a special school because that’s where my whole family grew up. Holly Pond is so close. We’re a family there. I think the most special thing is just how close everyone is at that school,” Twilley said. “From the time you’re little to the time you grow up, you grow up seeing the same faces every day. I think I can name every single person that was in my class. I can tell you their first and last name. That’s a good memory for me is knowing that I can grow up and know that we were all so close. We were a family there. It’s a small school and that’s what I love about Holly Pond is that we’re so close there.”
Kennedy added,
“Being a leader was really important to me. I remember during senior year; it was during basketball season, and we had a conflict on the team. We weren’t playing together as a team because some of us have never played together before. I remember us getting together and I had actually put all the younger girls in a group chat. It was just me and the younger girls. I sent them this long message and I just told them, ‘Look, you all are supposed to be on this team. No matter what, even though you might be in ninth grade or 10th grade, you are a part of the varsity team. Every time you all are out there, it’s just as good as me, Kaylee, and Raeleigh being out there. You all are supposed to be out there. When you all go out there, do not be scared to play older girls. You all are here for a reason.’ I let them know that and I knew that I was there to support them no matter what. I wanted them to know that if they make a mistake, everybody makes mistakes. I was like, ‘Just go out and have fun and do what you do. We put in so much work every single day. We practice every day and we run the same plays just as much as I run the plays. You all know what you are doing. Just go out and show those older girls that you’re just as good as them.”
Kennedy gave some advice to the students that will be starting high school in August as well.
“Some advice to the underclassmen that are coming to high school would be you’re never too young to be a leader,” Twilley said. “No matter what’s happening, no matter what you’re going through, just know that you’re in the right place where you’re supposed to be. Don’t take high school for granted. High school goes by so fast. To the younger girls, going to those early morning practices; they’re awful, having to wake up at 7 a.m. It was terrible, but now I look back and I wished that I was still waking up at 7 a.m. to go to those practices and waking up at six to go to the play dates. Don’t take it for granted. You’re never too young to step up and be a leader. Everyone has a role and throughout high school; you’ll find what your role is. If you see something happening, step up and say something about it.”
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