Sara McClinton

Classroom

Sara McClinton is a two-time Academic All-Big 12 First Team honoree and earned Capital One CoSIDA Academic All-District Second Team recognition in 2013, despite recovering from concussions in both the fall and spring seasons. A human biology major, McClinton plans to attend Physician’s Assistant school following her collegiate – and likely professional – volleyball career. She will complete her undergraduate degree in May and hopes to be a PA for a surgeon or pathologist.

Character

McClinton shares her senior leadership duties with only one other senior as half of KU’s 14-woman roster is comprised of freshmen. She acknowledges the importance of taking those duties seriously as team leaders can immensely effect the experience of incoming players. The last two summers, McClinton paid for herself to play on a USA Developmental Team, where she traveled overseas for the first time to strengthen her skills. Aside from her team role, McClinton is also a caring, supportive friend. Her longtime friend, Erin Furness, used to let McClinton tag along with her to the volleyball court. Furness was the star player, while McClinton was a self-proclaimed terrible player at the time. As time passed, McClinton grew up to be a Division I volleyball star while her friend developed the life-threatening Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. While Furness underwent treatment, McClinton visited often and then donated her hair to the Locks of Love charity.

Community

While she often volunteers with the KU volleyball team, McClinton and her family are active in their home community in Omaha, Nebraska. When she goes home, McClinton spends time coaching little volleyball players for free, just to help grow the sport and for her own enjoyment. She and her family go Christmas caroling to the elderly unable to travel and serve in a local thrift store called Humble Jumble. When her grandmother moved into a smaller home, she helped her family sort through items and divvy them up to less fortunate neighborhood.

Competition

An All-Big 12 First Team member in 2012 and 2013, McClinton is one of only three Jayhawks in program history to be named first team all-conference in back-to-back seasons. Just four matches into her senior season, McClinton chalked up her 1,000th career kill, making her the 14th player in Jayhawk history to do so. Currently, she and fellow Senior CLASS candidate – Texas senior Haley Eckerman – are the only active players in the Big 12 with 1,000 career kills. With 55 double-digit kill performances in her four years at Kansas, McClinton needs 24 kills to pass Jana Correa (1,131; 2003-06) for 10th on the all-time KU career list. Her season-high 18 kills helped the Jayhawks down No. 23 Creighton during the non-conference season. She is second to fellow senior, Chelsea Albers, as the team leader in kills per set (2.49). Last season, She overcame an early season injury to lead the Jayhawks in kills per set in 2013 (3.13) and was second on the team in the same mark in 2012 (3.29), both of which ranked in the Big 12’s top 10.