VENUS, Pa. (EYT/D9) — Ayanna Ferringer sprints up and down the track at Cranberry High School.
The summer sun is beating down on her. It’s scorching hot and Ferringer is tired.
She pushes on.
There’s work to be done to get better for her senior season on the volleyball court for the Berries.
(Pictured above, Cranberry senior middle hitter Ayanna Ferringer)
There’s stadium steps to run. There’s box jumps to complete. There’s abdominal workouts designed to strengthen her core to finish.
There’s summer league matches with her Cranberry teammates to play. And there’s peppering outside with her older sister, Ava, who is a junior right-side hitter at Westminster College to enjoy.
Ayanna Ferringer isn’t about to rest on her successful junior campaign.
Her philosophy: I can always get better.
Cranberry Area High School sports coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Redbank Chevrolet and DuBrook.
“I feel like I’m in pretty good shape and I’m really excited,” Ferringer said. “I think, this senior year, I’ll make a lot of fun memories. I’m excited for the team and just the atmosphere of playing games with them.”
The work is also to get her healthy after a scary ankle injury she suffered in the spring with her club volleyball team.
Ferringer landed awkwardly on the foot of teammate and tore several ligaments in her left ankle.
“I tried to walk it off for a few days,” Ferringer said. “But it got worse. I had to go to physical therapy for about three months. I’m really trying to get back into the swing of things and get into shape.”
Ferringer said the ankle feels sound.
She’s ready to dominate again this fall on the volleyball court for Cranberry.
(Ferringer, middle, talks with teammates during a timeout during a match at A-C Valley last season)
Last season the 5-foot-10 middle hitter was one of the most intimidating net players in the state.
Ferringer put up 244 kills — a very high number for a middle — to go with 54 blocks, 53 digs and 27 aces while serving at 96%.
She was a Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference first team selection.
Ferringer may slide to the outside from time to time this season, but her true value is at middle hitter where she is a nightmare for opponents because of her offensive and defensive capabilities.
“Middles don’t usually get the ball that much — that’s usually more of an outside thing,” Ferringer said. “But I’m definitely glad to be able to work with my setters and hit the ball.
“I’m excited about possibly playing more on the outside,” she added. “There might be some more opportunities for me to hit even more and just get my hands on the ball more, which would be good.”
Ferringer hopes to play in college, following in the footsteps of Ava and her mother, Monica, who was a star herself at Cranberry and then at Clarion University.
Ferringer is still undecided about what school she is going to attend to pursue a career in teaching.
“I have had some interest,” she said. “I’ve toured a few places, but I’m just unsure. It can be stressful, but I think I know what I’m looking for in a college and in a campus. I think once I find the right one, it’ll be an easy decision to make.
“Education is my No. 1 priority,” she added. “I want to become a teacher, so just finding the correct academic placement first is most important.”
Like volleyball, teaching runs in the Ferringer family.
Both of Ayanna’s parents are teachers. Her grandparents were teachers.
Ferringer, though, didn’t necessarily want to join the family volleyball business at first.
The sport didn’t appeal to her all that much when she first started playing in the seventh grade.
But it grew on her. She came to love it.
Now Ferringer, who also on the track and field team at Cranberry, couldn’t imagine her life without the sport.
She even hopes to coach it one day.
For now, Ferringer is focused on a fast-approaching senior season on the volleyball court with the Berries, who lost to D9 Class 2A champion Kane in the first round of the playoffs last season.
“We lost a lot of seniors, but I’m excited for the new group of girls coming up,” Ferringer said. “I think we all connect well and we’ll all play well together.”
THE FERRINGER FILE
NAME: Ayanna Ferringer
SCHOOL: Cranberry
YEAR: Senior
SPORTS: Volleyball and track and field
Q: You recently went on a mission trip with Cranberry High School to Jamaica. What did that experience teach you?
A: That was definitely one of the best experiences of my life. The people down there are just so joyful and grateful for anything. It just kind of opened my eyes to how blessed we are to live where we live and have the opportunities we have. I was grateful and glad I was able to help them and they taught me so much with their joy. It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun, too.
Q: How would you describe yourself as an athlete?
A: I’m a competitive player. I play with a lot of intensity and I’m just always ready to work hard.
Q: What’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learned while playing sports?
A: Just to always be encouraging to my teammates and be ready to help them in any way that I can.
Q: What’s your pregame routine?
A: I like to listen to music and psych myself up that way.
Q: What kind of music gets you pumped up?
A: (Chuckling) Well, it depends. Usually before a game, I’ll listen to rap.
Q: What do you do to handle a loss?
A: I just put it behind me, but also keep in mind the mistakes that I made and improve upon it for the next game.
Q: Is there an athlete, besides someone in your family, who inspired you?
A: (Former Clarion all-state outside hitter) Korrin Burns. Watching her play was amazing.
Q: What’s something people would be surprised to know about you?
A: (Laughing) That’s a tricky question. Let me think about this for a second.
Q: OK. We’ll circle back to that. What’s your favorite movie?
A: 10 Things I Hate About You.
Q: TV show?
A: I’m more of a movie person. I don’t really watch TV.
Q: Fair enough. If you could be another player for a week, who would you be and why?
A: (Iowa women’s basketball player) Caitlin Clark. She’s such an intense player. She’s just insane.
Q: Obviously volleyball is your No. 1 sports. What does track and field do for you?
A: It’s fun. I like to throw the javelin — that’s my favorite event, I’d say. And it keeps my arm in shape. But I just like the team environment and getting to socialize with everybody and cheering people on.
Q: OK. We’re going back to that question. What would people be surprised to know about you?
A: Well (pausing), I like to hunt and fish a lot.
Q: Have you been doing that for a long time?
A: Ever since I was little.
Q: Get any good trophies?
A: Yeah, I got an 11-point once. That was my biggest buck.
Q: That must have been just as exciting as any kill on the volleyball court, right?
A: Oh, yes! My dad was with me and we were both really excited. That was cool to share that with him.
Cranberry Area High School sports coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Redbank Chevrolet and DuBrook.
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