To be a leader, encouragement, example and unselfishness are required. To find an individual like this, there is no need to look far, as NIU volleyball player Carrie Blankenship displays all of these aspects and much more.

Her freshman year, however, she wasn’t able to display these qualities to their fullest, as she was in the midst of learning the collegiate game.

“It’s a lot different now than when I was a freshman,” said Blankenship. “My freshman year I came with my eyes wide open and learned a lot from the seniors, as well as the lower classmen. Now, I am able to lead the lower classmen by example, as well as vocally.”

Two players Blankenship has had an impact on are freshman outside hitter Tera Lobdell and middle blocker Daren Poe.

Performing well this season, Poe attributes much of her success to the 21-year old Blankenship.

“She has helped me on and off the court,” said Poe. “She is a very good example and has a great work ethic. At the beginning of the season when I was homesick, Carrie got each of us a teddy bear and told us she’d always be there if we needed someone to talk to. She has really helped me to adjust.”

Blankenship believes voicing her opinion is key to leading the team. She said encouragement at the right time is important, and she tries to show each of the players how to best represent the Huskie volleyball program.

At the moment, the Huskies sit in second place behind Ball State in the Mid-American Conference, with a 10-4 record overall and a 7-2 conference mark. Blankenship sees a lot in store for this team later in the year but knows success isn’t going to fall right into their laps.

“Every game from here on out is important,” said the Cedar Rapids-native. “If we want to achieve one of our goals, which was to host the conference tournament, we can’t slack off and have any more losses. We have to keep our focus.”

Blankenship seems to be displaying that on the court, as she is currently leading the team in kills, averaging 3.14, and hitting percentage .304, and second in digs, averaging 2.91 per contest. This season, she also has set a new career-best hitting percentage of .522.

The play she has shown on the floor hasn’t gone unnoticed, as she recently was named MAC player of the week for the week of October 1 through 9. Despite others noticing her miraculous play, Blankenship doesn’t see a difference.

“I haven’t really seen that much improvement because I always put forth the same amount of effort,” said the 5-foot-9 outside hitter. “I think through repetition you finally start to get the hang of it.”

When she took home the conference honor, Blankenship didn’t want to take credit for playing well without acknowledging the play of her teammates.

The senior co-captain plays the game the way it should be played: unselfishly. She doesn’t appreciate making a great play, but she claims to love watching her teammates get a nice kill or a spectacular dig. Being an emotional player is what she says lights a fire within her.

Along with her teammates, Blankenship wants to thank her coaches for helping her develop into a better player. NIU coach Todd Kress has coached the senior for three years and has seen great improvement.

“She’s not even close to where she was when I came here,” said Kress. “She’s a completely different player. She’s more confident, has improved her ball control and passing. I would have never imagined that she’d lead the team in kills, but that shows how far she’s come.”

Currently, Blankenship is battling an ankle injury and will sit out this weekend’s matches. However, not being on the court won’t stop her from leading vocally from the bench.

Being a senior, Blankenship will soon be on her own. As of right now, however, she is unsure of her future. One thing is certain though, she’ll lead herself, like she has the Huskies, in the right direction.