For some college athletes, balancing schoolwork and athletics is a huge struggle. Still, for Robert Morris volleyball player Allena Carmody, family support on the court and in the classroom is not far away.

The Sewickley native began her volleyball career in seventh grade when she started playing for her middle school team. She also played travel volleyball until she was 18 years old.

Carmody said that she decided to come to RMU because the head coach also coached her travel ball team, Pittsburgh Elite.

Another big reason the senior Libero and Defensive Specialist came to RMU was that she liked being close to home and having her family as a support system.

“I liked having that support system close and being able to go home.”

Having her ‘support system’ close to Carmody’s school can often be seen in the stands.

“There is someone at every single one of my games which is awesome,” said Carmody.

Allena’s older sister is also a college volleyball player, making it challenging to make all of their games, but they make it work.

“My parents will split on the weekends, trying to balance it out the best they can. They try to have someone in the stands that we recognize, which means so much.”

Having an older sibling who plays volleyball means that Carmody had a role model to look up to.

“We kind of started at the same time, and I always looked up to her, and just seeing her play made me want to play and be a better person and a better player,” said Carmody. “We practice together. We pepper together out in our yard and stuff like that. We’re always kind of pushing each other.”

Carmody will be looking to start her senior year at Robert Morris University at home against Kent State on Aug. 26, knowing that her family will be there to support her.