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OCTOBER 2021 31 cavalier profile BROOKLYN BORUM First-Year • Volleyball Even though Virginia volleyball's Brooklyn Borum is approximately 850 miles away from her hometown of Sterling, Ill., it appears as though she's right at home with her new family — her Virginia volleyball family. Five weeks into her first-year campaign, Borum is already play- ing like a veteran, having earned a spot in the starting lineup in 11 of UVA's first 12 matches of the season. Not only has Borum seen significant time on the court, but she's been arguably the Cavaliers' biggest contributor on the floor as a six-rotation outside hitter for a program that got off to its best start (8-4) in six years. And while it's been said, 'You can't pick your family,' most colle- giate student-athletes do have the luxury of choosing which coach- ing staff to play for in college. But Borum was not afforded that opportunity. She signed her national letter of intent to play volleyball at UVA in November 2020 under the previous coaching staff, who the University ultimately parted ways with during the spring of 2021. Fast forward to the present, and Borum could not be happier with how her circumstances ultimately developed. "At first it was scary knowing that the coaches left, but now I wouldn't trade it," Borum said. "[New head coach] Shannon [Wells] came in — she has taught us so much. The whole coaching staff has. They've really turned this thing around. It's been amazing playing un- der them, and I've already learned so much. "It's amazing going into practice every day. Everybody's buying in. Everyone's working hard. Everyone's working towards that culture we talk about every day." Culture is something that Wells preaches about daily. Fortunately for Wells and Borum, they'll have each other to help lay the founda- tion for Virginia volleyball for years to come. "Our goal is to get 1 percent better every day," Borum explained. "If that means we're working hard every day just buying into what Coach Shannon and the rest of the coaching staff see for us, then we just [have to] buy in every day." — Patrick Boling • Photo courtesy UVA