BYU’s Kevin Sagers

Volleywood proudly presents…

Ab Initio…

My path to becoming a collegiate volleyball player was more of an unconventional one. I grew up in Las Vegas, where volleyball is now only becoming a big sport. When I was in high school, there was only one boys volleyball club, and it was ridiculously overpriced, so I didn’t have a chance to start playing until I was a freshman in high school.

Never having played before, I found myself in a gym with players far more athletic and talented than me, but I loved the challenge of competing against them. Because of the level of play in the gym, I had to work hard to stay on the court, but I was able to. I didn’t earn a starting spot on the varsity team until my junior year, but that year we won state.

Discovered…

Coming into my senior year, I started thinking about my future in volleyball and what school I wanted to go to. I decided that I was going to BYU for my education, whether I played on the team or not. I started to contact the coaches there (then it was Tom Peterson with Shawn Patchell as assistant), and they agreed to come watch me. The game before they were going to come watch, I sprained my ankle, and I wasn’t going to be able to play in front of them. I sent them some film, but the only response I got was to come and try to walk on. So I did. I made the team after a few weeks of hard work, but got injured lifting weights, since I never had lifted before getting to college. So that year became my redshirt, and I went on a two year mission to Spain for my church.

The Return of Kevin…

After two years of not even touching a volleyball, I wondered if volleyball at BYU was even feasible. But I decided to try so I’d have no doubts or regrets, and somehow made the team again. Shawn Patchell had become the head coach, and since I had a lot to work on after not having played much for several years, he kind of ignored me at first. I fact, after that first year back, he told me he was going to cut me from the team, but that I could play as long as I wanted up to the cut date.

Watch Me…

So I decided I was going to show him I was better than he thought, and within a few weeks I had the best stats in the gym, better than even future All-American Andrew Stewart. So Patchell decided to let me stay. A few games into that season, he put me in a game against Cal Baptist, and I played great, and then was a starter for that and the next season.

Senior Year…

My senior year, life completely changed for me; I got married, Patchell was fired so I got a new coach, and I was playing with a completely new team. As those changes came, and I realized that I didn’t want a career out of volleyball, I started to see that volleyball was a stage for learning in my life, learning life lessons that I could apply to anything. Those lessons, along with the friendships and memories that I have due to volleyball, are some of the most valuable things in the world to me.

Most Memorable…

I think my most memorable match at BYU was against UCLA in the first round of MPSF playoffs in 2010. We packed the Smith Fieldhouse, and we were playing against a good UCLA team. Every point was hard fought and so intense. I’ll never forget the feeling of playing in front of a riled up BYU crowd like that. I ended up hitting like .640 with 20 something kills, so it was a good night for me, and we advanced.

Making History…

The night of the aces record. In 2011 we traveled to the Midwest to play Loyola. We had heard a lot about how difficult it is to play in their small gym, but I don’t think anyone had any idea what it was really going to be like. That place is absolutely tiny. I started because Taylor Sander didn’t travel due to academic struggles, and somehow I found a rhythm serving in that gym. To tell you the truth I had no idea how many aces I’d actually racked up until after the game. I knew I was serving well, because I had served quite a few balls and because their fans would try to get right in my ear each time I went back to try to throw me off. We ended up losing in five sets, so I was pissed, but later that night my mom called me and told me I’d broken the record for most aces in a match in the side out era. I’d beaten Taylor Evans’ record of 7, and I considered it an honor to have my name written anywhere near such an outstanding players name.

BYU Volleyball…

Volleyball at BYU has been an awesome experience. It’s taken me around the country and even to Italy, has given me the greatest friends I could ever ask for, helped me find my wife, and like I said earlier, taught me several valuable life lessons. I learned that hard work can get you places you never thought possible. I learned that no matter how hard you try, you just can’t do some things without a team. I learned sacrifice, what it is to be a leader and friend, how to deal with adversity, and what its like to represent something and some people that are a lot more important than yourself.

The Future…

Now I head to medical school in Missouri. That’s been a goal of mine all along, and volleyball was a stepping stone for me to get there. I’m really excited to see what the future holds for me and my family.

From the bottom of our hearts, we’d like to thank Kevin Sagers for giving us the chance to learn and discover his life of a volleyball player and the amazing things the sport has given to him.

We wish him the best in life!

Cheers Kevin!