Emily Eubanks has no problem saying she loves to win. Since picking up volleyball in third grade, she has persisted in what has proven to be her athletic forte as she’s gone on to play recreational, club and varsity volleyball at Lakeside High School.
“I’ve always wanted to win,” said Eubanks. “It’s been like that since I’ve started club. I’ve just been very competitive and pushed as far as I can.”
The Lakeside senior’s perseverance and skill as helped her bring the Lakeside Panthers to victory as the Georgia 6A Region 3 champions for the fourth year in a row, as well as to the Elite Eight playoffs.
Emily Eubanks celebrates with her teammates after winning the Georgia 6A Region 3 Volleyball Championships for Lakeside High School. Photo courtesy of Jennifer Fraley. 
Emily Eubanks and her fellow Lakeside High Panthers after winning the regional championships. Photo courtesy of Jennifer Fraley.
Eubanks was also recently chosen as 6A Region 3 Player of the Year. With 273 digs, 165 attacks and 63 aces, her level of skill is displayed in her personal record.
According to her coach Scott Newland, her quality as a player is also part and parcel of her character.
“Emily is our silent, unquestioned leader on the team,” said Newland. “She loves volleyball, she studies it, she helps everybody, she teaches. She leads by example. She’s kind of the calm during the storm when a match is going on.”
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Eubanks has been in Lakeside’s volleyball program for five years, having started in the junior varsity in eighth grade. She moved up to varsity during her freshman year to help the team with the state tournament. Newland stresses Eubanks’ passion for the game and versatility within it, noting that she’ll readily play out of position.
“She’s really a libero,” he said. “But we need another power arm, so she’ll play an outside hitter for us.”
When Eubanks began in the program, so had Newland, who had been used to coaching boys at the time. Newland says that he sensed the depth of Eubanks’ unique capabilities even then.
“Emily was the first one that I noticed when I came into tryout,” said Newland. “I noticed the way she carried herself during warm-ups, her platform in passing, she knew what we were trying to do as far as the drills and the tryouts. She didn’t have that look on her face like it was overwhelming.”
Eubanks’ tenacity and discipline carries over to other areas. When she’s not practicing or playing, she’s usually focused on academics. She’s part of the International Baccalaureate program, has a 4.0 GPA and is an AAU Academic All-American.
In keeping her with her enthusiasm with winning, Eubanks says that her end goal is to become to become a lawyer. While she hasn’t chosen a college yet, she has spoken to schools about their volleyball programs while keeping her priorities intact.
“Academics is number one,” said Eubanks. “If their academics aren’t in line, it wouldn’t be a choice for me.”
Besides focusing on her education, Eubanks like to spend time with her family and have movie nights with her friends. But plenty of energy goes into being the best athlete and student she can be and maintaining the mindset and team spirit to do so.
“I’m always trying to push us to our best capabilities and do what we think we can’t do,” said Eubanks. “If a team’s going in better than us, I’m always trying to say ‘Oh no, we’re still going to get past this.’”
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter covering Columbia County with The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com
