Meet Kayleigh Kinser, The Observer’s 2026 Volleyball Player of the Year
BY DANIEL SCHMIDT
THE OBSERVER
AUBURN — Ashley Parnell still remembers the tryout like it was yesterday.
It was the first time Kayleigh Kinser attempted to play organized volleyball, and she was trying out for Auburn Junior High School’s eighth-grade team. After spending most of her early years playing tennis, she had only come out because her friends played. To make matters worse, she hurt her ankle the day of tryouts.
Parnell, then an Auburn assistant, still saw something in her anyway.
“I remember some of the things going through my mind, where this girl’s never touched a volleyball before,” Parnell said. “And she just naturally has that ability.”
Now that ability has made Kinser The Observer’s 2026 Volleyball Player of the Year. The junior finished with 320 kills — the most of any player in the area — 183 digs, 43 aces and 13 blocks against one of the state’s most difficult schedules.
She also did it for an Auburn High School team that went undefeated against its Class 6A Area 4 opponents and reached the state tournament for the first time since 2023.
“It’s crazy,” Kinser said. “I would have never expected that.”
The honor also comes days after Auburn City Schools named her its October Female Athlete of the Month.
From tryouts to JV
Despite learning about the sport later than most of her peers, Kinser, who was admittedly “so nervous” and “didn’t know anything,” made the team and earned playing time her first season. A year later as a ninth grader, she earned a spot on Auburn’s junior varsity team, ahead of the girls she had only initially tried out with in eighth grade to have fun.
“That really boosted my confidence,” Kinser said.
When asked whether that immediate jump in competition was scary or exciting, she didn’t hesitate.
“It was so exciting,” Kinser said. “Because I can do it with my friends, and it’s also at a higher level. So it’s even more fun.”
As Parnell remembers it, that jump confirmed what she saw at tryouts.
“A lot of kids don’t make that jump,” Parnell said. “So that’s kind of when I noticed [her abilities].”
Everybody’s game plan
Auburn entered the season with a roster heavily reliant on freshmen and staring down a demanding schedule. By the time the season ended, the Lady Tigers had played nine games against Class 6A finalists, two games against Class 5A finalists and a game against a Brookstone (Georgia) team that won the GIAA Class AAA state championship.
Auburn ultimately finished 9-21 in Parnell’s first season as head coach. Through all the ups and downs, Kinser gave Auburn a reliable scorer who every single opponent had to plan around.
“She’s our go-to scorer, and we kind of emphasized this with her all season: she was going to be everybody’s game plan when we played them,” Parnell said.
Kinser’s value didn’t stop at the net. She played all six rotations for most of the season, which Parnell said is less common for a high school outside hitter.
“A lot of times they’ll play three rotations in the front row, and then we’ll have somebody go in the back row for them,” Parnell said. “But her, again, she’s just got that natural ability. She’s going to put the ball on the floor, and then she’s going to go to the back row and dig balls and pass everything.”
Parnell also pointed to the topspin serve Kinser has been developing, which she called “really lethal when she gets a hold of one.”
Even as the losses against quality competition piled up for the young team, Kinser said her approach stayed simple.
“We lost some games, but it’s just going to make us better,” Kinser said. “We just have to stay positive and start fresh each game. Whatever happened last week, forget it.”
And for all her ability, she also had to learn to lead in a rotation that played plenty of freshmen.
“It was a little bit of pressure,” Kinser said. “But it’s also an opportunity to be someone they can look up to. They’re going to look up to you, so you better show a good example.”
Getting past Dothan
Auburn went undefeated against its Class 6A Area 4 opponents, sweeping the regular season and the area tournament. Its state hopes came down to a regional match against Dothan.
“We needed to win that to make state,” Kinser said of her mindset going in. “Just having fun. Don’t be too hard on yourselves.”
When the final point went Auburn’s way, the reserved junior let loose.
“A lot of excitement,” Kinser said. “I was jumping up and down.”
She called it her favorite moment of the season.
In Birmingham, Auburn’s run ended with a 3-0 loss to Thompson in the Class 6A quarterfinals. Kinser said she would take the experience anyway.
“It was a very good opportunity,” Kinser said. “Thompson is a really good team, and we got to play a really good team, and I feel like it just made us better.”
‘I just want to win’
When asked what she enjoyed most about the state tournament, Kinser uttered a one-word answer: “The competitiveness.”
“I just want to win,” she said. “Just fighting for every single point.”
She credited that drive to her father, who played a lot of sports growing up.
“He kind of knows a lot, and he’s very competitive,” she said. “Even more than me, I feel like.”
Before matches, Kinser puts in her headphones and turns on rap, usually Drake, and munches on a snack that consists of a granola bar, Welch’s Fruit Snacks or Slim Jims. On the court, she studies Nebraska outside hitter Harper Murray.
“She’s just so big on the court,” Kinser said. “I just really like watching her.”
Off the court, Parnell described her as reserved, though she has seen Kinser come out of her shell over the last few years.
“She’s just fun to coach and be around,” Parnell said. “Everybody likes her, and they want to play hard for her and with her.”
What’s next
Kinser wants to play in college. Club season is next, then her senior year with the Lady Tigers. Although she hasn’t heard from college programs yet, she plans to take the ACT this spring. Her dream school is Alabama, where her brother went.
Parnell said she believes the ceiling is high.
“I think the sky’s the limit,” Parnell said. “I think it’s a matter of how bad she wants it.”
The next step, Parnell said, is becoming a complete six-rotation player, the kind college coaches look for because they “don’t want to have to sub in a DS for their outside.” She also expects Kinser to take on a bigger leadership role as a senior.
“Her younger teammates are going to be looking at her, whether she’s doing good or not so good,” Parnell said. “So just continuing to remind her to be that good example and be a leader. And then I think everything on the court will follow.”
Parnell said that growth showed up every week against a tough schedule.
“Every week she’s going up against good competition, players who are just as good as she is,” Parnell said. “Just watching her compete against them and hang with them really showed me what kind of player she can be.”
