Claire Chaussee has blossomed into a do-it-all leader for U of L volleyball

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Claire Chaussee hopes to keep playing volleyball professionally in Europe, but she put that possibility off a year, deciding to come back for her Covid year at Louisville. And she is a key reason why the Cardinals are again near the top of the national rankings.

"Finding out Claire was coming back was huge," said U of L head coach Dani Busboom Kelly. "We would be a completely different team without her obviously. It also felt so perfect because she was just starting to play her best volleyball midway through last season. You want to continue that and give her opportunities to grow and she's certainly taken advantage."

Has she ever.

Chaussee has now gone over 1,000 kills for her career. An injury to teammate Anna DeBeer has expanded her role, often playing all six rotations, getting no breaks, serving and passing to go along with her hitting. And she has gotten more vocal as a leader.

Louisville volleyball All-American Claire Chaussee finishes a point in a win over Virginia Tech at L&N Arena.
ERIC CRAWFORD

"I think learning that it's not about me," said Chaussee when asked how she's learned and grown during her five years at Louisville. "It's like what you can give to other people like your teammates to make them better. That goes into life too."

"She's just pretty amazing," said Busboom Kelly. "She's definitely one of the most special players I've coached because of the transformation. She's really maximized everything that she's been given and the resources here and really embraced everything about being a student-athlete. She's also been really patient. She didn't give up and she's earned it and now she's in the running for potentially national player of the year. That's how well she's playing."

There are certainly no regrets for the Wisconsin native on her decision to return for an additional season.

"After my original senior year, I knew we could make it further so I'm happy I stayed and I think we can do a lot of great things this year," said Chaussee.

When reminded that you can't go much further than the Final Four U of L got to last season she added this with a smile. "You can. You can go a little further and I think this team can do it."

They've certainly got a chance. Louisville is currently 20-2 overall, 11-1 in the ACC and ranked fifth in the country. They have six regular season matches remaining, starting with a home matches against North Carolina State Friday at 7:00 pm and North Carolina Sunday at 1:00 pm.