When Beth Prince started playing volleyball in sixth grade, she was — by her own admission — “awful.”

“I would whiff on the ball completely,” Prince said. “It was pretty embarrassing. I’m just happy people didn’t record my games. If somebody had those tapes, I’d freak out.”

Prince can relax. Two years after she took up the sport, she had her first college scholarship offer from Wisconsin.

This past season, the 6-foot-3 outside hitter led Avon (Ind.) to its best season ever, earning her ESPNHS Freshman of the Year honors.

Avon completed the first undefeated regular season in school history at 33-0, but fell one win short of what would have been the Orioles’ initial state title. They finished 39-1 and came in 13^th in the final POWERADE FAB 50 national rankings.

Prince led the Orioles with 453 kills and a .343 hitting percentage, earning first-team All-State — a rarity for a freshman.

Not that individual statistics or honors mattered much to the 15-year-old. When Avon coach Scott McQueen notified her she had made All-State, she told her parents the news but couldn’t recall the details.

“I had to text Scott because I couldn’t remember what it was called,” Prince said.

“My parents always taught me to be humble, and Scott told me the same thing. I think they’re right. When you get a big head, bad things happen.”

Katie Higginbotham, a senior outside hitter who will play next season at Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne, said she and the other Avon veterans never worried about Prince getting an ego.

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