Nowhere to go but up

It’s hard to imagine UVU volleyball with out Kayli (formerly Broadbent) Doxey, but thanks to early events in her teenage years, the 6’0” All-star outside hitter is finishing out her volleyball college career here.

Doxey’s volleyball career began in eighth grade thanks to a friend.

“I was forced to try out by a friend,”  Doxey said. “We made a bet that if I tried out for volleyball, she’d try out for basketball.”

After sitting on the bench most of her eighth grade year, playing through high school and winning the state championship as a senior, Doxey started receiving recruiting letters from schools.

Doxey could have been seen playing volleyball for Cal, Texas A&M, Brown, Portland State, Virginia Tech, Rice, West Point, Citadel, Northern Arizona or even in-state rival Utah State, but instead came just north of her Arizona hometown of Gilbert to be a Wolverine.

“I chose not to go to certain schools because the location wasn’t right. I wanted to be close to family. I wanted to be in an area where I knew my standards would be upheld,” Doxey said. “It’s just a great area and a great place to be.”

Doxey’s friend didn’t hold up her end of the deal, but Doxey did hers and because of it landed on UVU’s volleyball roster three years ago.

Her freshman year saw her being named the Division I Independent Freshman of the Year after she averaged 3.38 kills per game, started 27 matches and played in all 31, recorded double-digit kills in 21 matches and held other records. Doxey’s sophomore and junior year records just got bigger.

As of her junior year, Doxey now holds the school record and is the all-time leader in kills per set and points per set, and her senior year has only just begun.

After all of these milestones, Doxey still has goals for her final season, such as surpassing things she’s done in the past and continuing to get better.

Already this year Doxey has put down 112 kills (averaging 4.31 per set), gotten 62 digs (averaging 2.38 per set) and that’s prior to just their eighth game this season.

Doxey is also striving to take her volleyball career where it has never been, now that UVU is part of the Great West Conference.

“I would really like to help the team win the championship, beat certain teams we haven’t beat before and show everyone that we are number one and that we’re not number two in the conference,” Doxey said. “I think we all like the challenge of getting there.”
Doxey’s college volleyball career will end before 2010 ends.

“I think her career is coming to an end too fast,” said coach Sam Atoa. “It’s amazing how things go through really fast and just yesterday she was just here for the first time.”

Doxey attributes her volleyball success to luck and said, “Maybe it’s a confidence issue, but I was lucky, last year I was lucky to do what I did and maybe I’ll get lucky this year to do what I did last year.”