Entering high school, junior Carly Mills knew that she wanted to continue playing in college. She came into the gym each day ecstatic and excited to get better and work with her team. Carly pushed herself and made sure she left the gym each day exhausted. That hard work opened new doors for her future to play in college.

Mills has now started varsity in two seasons and played on varsity all three years she has been at HSE for the Royals volleyball team. Her performance over the past three seasons has led her to set the record for the most digs as a junior here at HSE.

“I played with a senior two years ago named Grace who set the record a senior”, Mills said. “For me to have another season left and having already beat the school record, it makes it so much more impressive and special to me”.

Carly has had a unique recruiting process as she stepped onto the recruitment scene from the moment she first put on a jersey and played in her first varsity game. She had an idea of where she wanted to go, but never knew how quickly she would be looked at by top D1 programs.

“We were all very excited for Carly because it is very hard to get recruited by D1 programs and for her to get recruited as a freshman and make her commitment as a sophomore”, Lillian Leiner said. “It is very exciting and such a cool experience for her”.

“I really respected and appreciated the IU coaching staff and after seeing the facilities and going on my official visit, I knew IU was the best place for me. It was the right size and close to home for my family to come see me and that was the most important thing to me”, Mills said.

Mills has gone through the recruiting scene flawlessly and has found the place she will call home and start the next chapter of her volleyball career after high school. Mills hopes to surpass more records and continue to exceed expectations moving forward in her next season as she wraps up her junior year.