Melanie McHenry kicks for Speedway football team despite Division I volleyball scholarship

Melanie McHenry isn't your usual standout volleyball player.

The 6-foot-2 Speedway (Ind.) junior outside hitter has verbally committed to Louisville, is a MaxPreps All-American, leads her team in most statistical categories, and ranks among the national leaders in kills and kill percentage.

Add to that, she is an A student and team captain.

But McHenry also stands out in Speedway's varsity football team photo. You can't miss her. She is the fourth from the left in the front row. She wears jersey No. 10, has long blond hair and feminine features her football teammates don't display. She's also the only football player wearing pink shoes.

McHenry is a third-year varsity football player and was the team's third-leading scorer as a sophomore when she kicked for 48 points (42 point after tries and a pair of field goals).

The fact that McHenry is female and playing football isn't as unique as it once was. The number of girls playing high school football this year is not available, but according to the National Federation of State High School Associations, around 1,500 suited up in 2013.

McHenry isn't even Speedway's first female football player. Courtney Walton kicked for the varsity squad five years ago.

But she is the only All-American volleyball player wearing football pads and certainly one of the top female football players either side of the Mississippi River.

Speedway is known for the Indianapolis 500, but McHenry might be the town's biggest name since Joyce DeWitt, star of the once-popular sitcom "Three's Company" (1977-84).

Speedway football coach Steve Wray thinks that if she focused on football, she could be a college kicker.

"She is as good a kicker as anyone around," said Wray. "She's only a junior and works at getting better all the time. If she focused on football, no telling how good she would be. She certainly can kick at some collegiate level."

As a freshman, when area media twice named her Athlete of the Week in football, McHenry said that if she kicked in college she would eventually "become the NFL's first female kicker."

"I have a fire in my belly and want to improve everything I can," said McHenry. "I just want to be the best I can be at everything I do."

McHenry's daily practice routine is to kick for 30-35 minutes with the football team, then head off to a two-plus hour volleyball practice. On football game nights, she wraps up volleyball practice, then puts on the pads and heads to the football game.

She said there is no special dressing room or special treatment from players or officials. "I'm just part of the team."

McHenry also handles the kickoff duties for the Sparkplugs and Wray says the majority of the time, she kicks inside the 10-yard line. He estimated that her field goal range is 40-45 yards and has no problem with giving McHenry a shot at a game-winner with the outcome on the line.

"She more than just holds her own," said Wray. "She is very legitimate. She is an outstanding athlete and works very hard to get better."

As a matter of fact, Wray thinks the 6-2, 160-pound McHenry could play outside linebacker for his team. She is taller than most of her football or volleyball teammates and according to the Speedway football roster, she outweighs 17 of them.

McHenry has 19 PATs this season and could possibly reach the 48 point total she had last year when she played a key role in the team going 8-4 and reaching the playoffs. Entering Friday's game with Indianapolis Lutheran, the Sparkplugs were 3-4.

"We only have six seniors and are very young in most positions," said Wray. "Melanie's experience helps in a lot of areas."

McHenry is considered by her coaches as a team leader - in both volleyball and football. Though a junior, she is a volleyball team captain, an honor generally reserved for seniors.

"We're a young team and Melanie understands the ups and downs. She is so well respected at our school and by her football teammates, she is most definitely a team leader," said Wray.

Needless to say, parents Michael and Marsha McHenry have elevated nerves when Melanie trots onto the football field to kick, but they are proud of her achievements and confident she will be successful.

"Do I have any fears about football? Absolutely, but moreso in the first two years," said Marsha. "I have seen her hit the ground probably 100 times in soccer (even breaking her collarbone). She's gotten a concussion from basketball and had her feet taken out from underneath her while in the air playing volleyball."

Dad Michael echoes his wife, saying he "loves" the fact that Melanie is playing football.

"We encouraged her to try because we thought she would do well," he said. "Originally, the plan was for just (to kick) extra points. However, as her role expanded she really embraced it and wants to succeed in it. She also has a great relationship with the team and coaches that is fun to watch from the stands."

Melanie said there is a rule, though. Once she kicks the ball, she is to run off the field as fast as she can.

"That's the deal ... to avoid contact," she said. "The Louisville (volleyball) coaching staff is OK with me playing football, but they also say no contact. The team does a great job of protecting me."

If she had her way, Melanie would carry the ball.

"I definitely would be a running back," she said.

Melanie's soccer background made the transition to football a natural one, but despite how good she was at soccer, volleyball won out once she started high school.

"I loved soccer, but have never regretted my decision," she said.

Needless to say, soccer was a good segue into football.

"I'm glad all that money we paid for her to play club soccer is at least getting good use," said Marsha. "I think she is a pretty decent kicker too. The whole football team and coaches have been great. She has 40 big brothers all going to high school with her at the same time, it makes things easier."

According to Melanie, that's the best part of football. "They are like another extended family."

But volleyball is where McHenry truly stands out, not just because she is taller than her teammates. There are, after all, other players wearing pink shoes, but she ranks among the nation's most powerful hitters.

When coach Sadie Dizney talks about Melanie, she's quick to say "cornerstone."

"She is truly a cornerstone player," said Dizney. "She has been a leader in many ways vocally and physically on the court since her freshman year. She has elevated our program significantly. She has a good supporting cast, but she's done things Speedway has never seen before. She has changed our expectations."

McHenry, who ranks fourth nationally with 606 kills, had a seven-game stretch earlier this season where she averaged 9.8 kills per game. Not surprisingly, Speedway won all seven. The team is currently 22-7.

Known for her powerful hitting, Dizney said Melanie's strength is her adaptability.

"She reads opponents defensively or offensively," said Dizney. "She's an outside hitter, however it doesn't matter where she is, she finds a way to succeed. Though she holds three school records for hitting, she's a full rotation player."

Because of her power, most teams try to stay away from Melanie.

"It's a love-hate relationship with our opponents," pointed out Dizney. "They are in awe of her talent, but don't want to play against her. Rarely do you have someone who really knows what to do with her."

She serves at 92 percent and is averaging almost an ace per set. She is second on the team in blocks and leads in digs with better than a 3.3 average. She's even found time for 20 assists and 231 serve receptions (4.4) and only has five return errors.

McHenry's eye-popping numbers as a sophomore included 656 kills (6.3 average) and a 56 percent hitting ratio as the Sparkplugs won 34 of 37 matches.

"Being successful at everything I do is my driving force," said Melanie. "I learned when I was little I had a competitive edge and when I found volleyball I knew I could go far. I'm from a small town and a lot of people don't go big places. To have someone from a small town go big is just awesome."

It's little wonder college coaches found their way to Speedway, a small Indianapolis enclave of less than 12,000 people, and began recruiting McHenry as a freshman when she averaged 6.2 kills per set.

She said her role models "are people who are less fortunate who strive to work hard. They start from nothing and work hard to end up with something."

Sounds like a cornerstone for success.