Hi-Line Athlete Profile: Kim Ghekiere, CJI Volleyball

Coming into the volleyball season, one of the teams in the 6C East that was getting a lot of attention was Chester-Joplin-Inverness, and after the Hawks run to the Northern C Divisional Tournament last season, that hype was warranted.

So far though, things have not quite gone as planned for the Hawks, who dropped a match in straight sets this past weekend to Chinook. However, one of their seniors and key players, Kim Ghekiere, said her team still believes.

"This season has been a little rough," Ghekiere said. "I wasn't really expecting that, but we played the No. 1 team in our district last week, and even though we lost in three, we played so hard and if we go into our game against North Star (Thursday) playing like that, I believe we can be successful."

Ghekiere would know a thing or two about playing quality volleyball because she did it all of last season as she earned Second-Team All-District honors for a team that finished runner-up in the 6C East. The Hawks fell short of the state tournament and were eliminated at divisionals, but with Ghekiere and two other All-District players returning, the Hawks had high hopes to enter the season and with the return of the injured Khloe Kammerzell, which hopefully happens soon, CJI still has reason to believe it can make a run.

Yet if that's going to happen, it's going to also take an impressive effort from Ghekiere, who is one of the top hitters on the team. And part of what makes Ghekiere prepared to take on that role is her lifelong education in the sport of volleyball, via her mom, Rachel, who is an assistant coach for the Hawks and has coached in Chester for 25 years.

"I have been around volleyball since I was a baby with my mom as a coach," Kim Ghekiere said. "She made the decision that she was going to retire when I graduate but I always tell her that she won't but she's pretty determined that this is her last year. I know all of the girls, including myself, are going to miss her at the practices and the games."

While Ghekiere doesn't play any other school sports, she does participate in speech and debate and also competes on a swimming team in Chester that is not related to the school system. So this is her last chance to be on a Hawks athletic team, and it's a chance she wants to make the most of. For CJI, the process of turning the season around starts Thursday and Ghekiere is as excited as anyone for the opportunity. However, before she and the Hawks take on North Star, the Havre Daily News caught up with her for five questions.

HDN: How do you like your mom as a coach?

Ghekiere: "I love having my mom as a coach. She's put in so many years of hard work and dedication for the program. It's as simple as she's my coach on the court and she's my mom at home. It's pretty easy for her to pick on me at practices, but I do the same and it always lightens the mood whenever it happens."

HDN: What have you enjoyed the most about playing volleyball at CJI?

Ghekiere: "What I have enjoyed the most are the relationships that you make. We are all a family and know what we need as far as how to make each other hyped up again or just a simple pat on the back to cheer someone up. We definitely know how to make each other laugh which really helps most situations."

HDN: What is your goal for the rest of the season?

Ghekiere: "Definitely want to finish the second half of this season showing the other teams that just because we hit a few bumps in the road, doesn't mean that we aren't going to catch up. If that doesn't work out, it's not a problem and, hopefully, come district time we are all healthy and have our full squad and can show the other teams we mean business."

HDN: What do you have in store for your future?

Ghekiere: "I'm really looking forward to my future. I will most likely attend Montana Tech or Carroll College. I will be taking two years of pre-pharmacy at either of these places and then go onto pharmacy school in Idaho or Montana."

HDN: What has being an athlete in CJI meant to you?

Ghekiere: "The relationships I have made with this team, not just this year but in the past years, I will never forget. Hawk volleyball is always going to be apart of my life and I will always be a Hawk."