Maddy
Ball

Athlete Bio#

Height

5'7"

Hometown

Delray Beach, Fla.

Education

Donna Klein Jewish Academy (Fla.) Florida State University

Most Notable

Started playing sitting volleyball in 2018 after having played standing volleyball for seven years

Major Competitions

2020: Exhibitions vs Russia and Brazil at Colorado Crossroads

Physical Disability: Congenital Below Elbow Amputee

"I was born without my right arm below the elbow. I got my first prosthetic at the age of three months when my mom and grandma used a baby doll arm."

Path to the Sitting Volleyball National Team: "I started playing sitting volleyball in August 2018. I was introduced while at an 18-and-under standing volleyball tournament in Orlando. I was confronted by Steve Bishop, a member of the USA Volleyball Sitting Volleyball Commission, and I thought I was going to be told I couldn't play with my prosthetic because I have been told that in the past. Instead, he told me his position and invited me to try out for the U.S. Women's Sitting National Team in Orlando later that month. I went and met the entire team as well as the coaches. I made the A2 (second team), and after a 10-day period at our training center in Edmond, Oklahoma, I got the opportunity to play against Ukraine in an exhibition and got pulled up to the National Team."

Did You Know

Played standing indoor volleyball as an opposite hitter from 2011 to 2018 with Developmental Volleyball Academy (DVA)
Selected Sun Sentinal All-Palm Beach County First-Team as a high school junior and senior at Donna Klein Jewish Academy after being second-team as a sophomore and honorable mention as a freshman
After graduating from Donna Klein Jewish Academy in Boca Raton, Florida, attending Florida State University where she is majoring in athletic training with hopes of studying prosthetics and orthotics in grad school
Named CBS 12 Athlete of the Week
Selected to National Art Honor Society as a sophomore and junior at Donna Klein Jewish Academy and served as its board chair
Member of National Honor Society as a senior
Member of National Technical Honor Society all four years in high school
International College Counselors Book Award as a high school junior

Happiest Moment in Life: "Getting my three-legged puppy Nemo. It was the end of my freshman year in high school and a family friend sent us a picture of the three-legged golden doodle puppy and I immediately needed to have him! He was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his leg and imbedded in his chest so it never grew. I immediately created a Facebook account and emailed the breeder. They responded saying they were looking to give him to wounded warriors or someone also with a “disability.” My mom and I came up with a list of the 10 reasons why we would be the perfect fit for each other from examples ranging from we are both missing opposite limbs to obstacles I’ve overcome and I know he can overcome anything. The video went viral on their Facebook page and they donated the little three-legged puppy named Nemo to me!"

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